And here we are with the latest chapter of AAML: Diamond and Pearl! Our heroes are still stranded in the Hisui Region, and tensions are rising within Jubilife Village. It's time to pick up where we left off! No anonymous reviews to address, so we'll jump right in! Enjoy everyone! I own nothing except the story!


"Akari, please do try to calm down! Worrying yourself to the bone won't accomplish anything other than possibly making yourself ill as well!"

Professor Laventon's words fell on deaf ears as Akari frantically paced back and forth outside of the door leading to the Medical Corps' room, her heart racing a mile a minute as she awaited the diagnosis of the victims of the harsh Alabaster Icelands.

Obviously she was worried about Lucas. Her new friend was as talented a Pokémon catcher as anyone she'd ever seen before. When he went in, he went in with no fear. But he was also cautious with his decisions, making sure he analyzed a situation before he made his move, always picking the right angle to approach a Pokémon from.

Seeing him half-frozen like that, Akari's stomach turned from worry, and she could feel her temper flaring…not at Lucas, but towards Captain Cyllene for sending him out to the Icelands without being properly equipped. Even she hadn't been given the green light to trek the Alabaster Icelands yet, so why send Lucas with a total stranger?

Those strangers…Akari's mind was still whirling with confusion at what she saw. The boy had been brought in by Prof. Laventon while clutching an unconscious Pikachu. That in and of itself was bizarre enough. But nothing could have ever prepared her for the shock of looking at her own reflection in the flesh.

Whoever this girl was, if someone had told her that she had a long lost twin sister, Akari would've believed it. The hair, the facial structure, the skin tone, it was like looking in a mirror…a mirror that showed what she would look like if she was at death's door, frost building up all over her body as if she'd been out there for hours with no protection from the frigid air.

Akari had spent enough time with the Medical Corps to know what needed to be done. A warm bath to try and gently thaw out their frozen extremities, and pray to Almighty Sinnoh or whatever deity was out there that no permanent damage would be done. She'd met a few members of the Security Corps that were missing a few fingers and toes from accidents in the Icelands where they'd been stranded.

And those were the lucky ones.

"Akari…please."

Akari finally stopped pacing to look over at the clearly anxious professor. She could see the worry in his eyes, both for her and for the rescued survey party. "Why does she look like me, Professor?" Her voice trembled with anxiety. "That space-time rift…is she me from another world? Another universe?! If she dies, am I next?! I'm scared, Professor!"

"I understand, dear girl." Laventon placed his hands firmly on the teen's shoulders. "But I'm sure that everything will be alright. No matter what happens, you will be alright."

Akari shook her head in despair. "How can you know that though? What if our fates are intertwined somehow?" She pulled away from the professor, sneaking up to the closed door and silently opening it just enough to see what was happening inside. The little Cyndaquil that had recently been recovered - by the stranger named Ash according to the professor - was working hard trying to keep the water in the tub warm with its Ember attack. "She has to survive, Professor. She just has to."

When she saw Captain Pesselle look towards the door, Akari jumped back in hopes that she hadn't been spotted, then she crumbled to the ground and held her head in her hands. "She was even found with a Pikachu protecting her…" She reached for a Pokéball on her belt, releasing the Pokémon inside. "Would my Pikachu do the same if it were me? The real me, I mean…"

Akari's Pikachu didn't even seem to acknowledge it'd been spoken to as it simply curled up into a ball and closed its eyes to snooze, causing Akari to huff and bury her head again.

"Alright, let's get one thing clear." Laventon's brow furrowed as he crouched down closer to Akari's level, trying to force as much authority as he could into his normally timid voice. "That girl in there, regardless of what she may look like, isn't you. There is only one you, and you're her."

"The professor's right, Akari."

Akari's head shot up in shock, as she looked up to see Lucas standing over her, a tired smile on his face in an attempt to reassure her.

"Whoever that is, she can't be you. You're one of a kind."

Akari finally relinquished a small smile, her eyes welling up with unshed tears as she rubbed them away. "I'm glad you're okay, Lucas. What were you even doing out there? The Alabaster Icelands are so dangerous! Even I don't have clearance to go out there on my own."

Lucas's smile faded as he sat down next to her. "I was backing Ash up on a trial."

"Ash? Which one is that?"

"The boy." Lucas shook his head in disbelief. "You should've seen it, Akari. You think I'm good? Ash threw himself in front of an Alpha Abomasnow just to try and stop it from hurting that rogue Pikachu, and he didn't even blink either."

"Wait, Captain Cyllene sent you and a total stranger to go after a rogue Pokémon in one of the most hazardous parts of Hisui?!" Akari's nostrils flared in anger. "You were set up for failure!"

"That was not the intention."

Akari gasped as she whipped her head around, seeing Captain Cyllene walking into the room from her office next door. "C-Captain Cyllene, I-"

"Don't worry, I understand." Cyllene raised her hand to silence her, then placed both hands back behind her back. "Sending Lucas out to the Alabaster Icelands with a stranger was not a decision I made lightly. There were…many different factors I had to take into account." She lowered her head for a moment. "It is gratifying to see that you're unharmed, Lucas. But what of Ash and this other girl who looks like Akari?"

Lucas frowned, his brow furrowing with concern. "Captain Pesselle wouldn't tell me anything. She's super focused on making sure she does everything she can to make sure they survive, and she refused to give me any clues on how good their chances are."

"I see." Cyllene lowered her head for a moment, her eyes closed as she collected her thoughts. Then she turned her attention back to Akari. "Akari, have you completed your report on Buizel's Aqua Jet attack?"

"W-What?"

"Should I take that as a no, then?"

"I…" Akari paused, brow furrowing in frustration as she stood up and glared at the silver-haired woman. "I have my report; I just need to submit it to Prof. Laventon."

"Then do so. Once you're finished, you and Lucas both return to your quarters and get some rest. You'll both report back to my office for a new assignment first thing in the morning."

Akari's anger was close to boiling over, her fists clenched tightly at her sides as she began to tremble from trying to hold it in. Cyllene's words seemed so…uncaring, callous even. Did she not even see how this was affecting her? Did she even care?

"Captain Cyllene, please, with all due respect," said Lucas. "Can't we stay here at least until we get an answer about how they're doing?"

The captain's cold stare was turned onto Lucas, causing the boy to sweatdrop apprehensively. "I gave you both an order. Do as I say. I will see you in the morning." She then turned her attention to Prof. Laventon. "Professor, please ensure that Akari is properly compensated for her work today."

"Y-Yes, Captain." Laventon stuttered as he and the others watched Cyllene enter the medical office, swiftly closing the door behind her before anyone could get a peek inside. "Blunt and to the point as always."

"Akari, are you okay?"

"No, Lucas. I am not okay." She turned to look at him, tears welling up in her eyes as her lips quivered. "But it looks like I'm being ordered to be okay so I guess I have no choice!" Using her sleeve to again wipe away the water in her eyes, she presented her notes to Prof. Laventon. "Here's everything I have for today, you can pay me tomorrow. Goodnight!"

"Akari, wait!" Lucas called after her as she bolted from the room, rushing into the cold Hisuian night. "Excuse me, Professor." Lucas rushed after her, only catching up to her right before she could escape to the privacy of her own. "Akari! Please, don't run. Talk to me, what's wrong?"

"What's wrong?!" Akari snapped, tears now flowing freely down her cheeks. "Today I barely get any research done thanks to a bunch of wild Shinx and Buizel having a brawl near the river, and my Pikachu refuses to listen to any of my commands so I can't even try to break it up! I come back to find you almost frozen to death, and then I find out I have a twin that I can only assume landed from the same hole in the sky that you and that other boy did, and Captain Cyllene acts like she doesn't even care! Does she have any idea how much stress I'm under?! What if she and I are connected somehow?! And now on top of it all, Mai of the Diamond Clan has some request she wants me to take care of, and oh guess what, it requires me to have to battle! My Pikachu will not listen to me! I can't battle anything! That's what's wrong!"

Lucas could only stare as Akari slammed her fists against her own door before crumbling to the ground and starting to sob. His heart ached for her, seeing her so downtrodden. He didn't know who this Mai was, but he quickly realized that the request was only one part of a much larger weight on Akari's chest. "I'm sorry, Akari." He said quietly as he knelt down next to the girl who had curled herself into a ball to hide her face. "I can't even imagine what you must be going through right now…but I want you to know that you're not alone, okay? If there's anything I can do to help, you don't even have to ask me. After everything you've done for me since I got here, I'll gladly do whatever it takes to take some of the burden off of you."

Eyes still leaking, Akari peeked up at Lucas, who placed a comforting hand on her back, gently rubbing it in slow strokes as he tried his best to smile at her. She couldn't bring herself to smile back, as she turned away and stared off into space, eyes half-closed as fatigue began to claim her. "I'm so tired, Lucas." She finally said quietly. "Every day I wake up at the crack of dawn and try to do what I can to earn my keep around here. You already have your first star rank, and it took me weeks to get to that point. I'm not a natural like you are, I had to scrape and claw my way to where I am now, and yet it feels like I haven't progressed at all."

"Come on, you know that's not true. If it hadn't been for you mentoring me out there in the field, I'd already be dead. Plus, it was you who taught me how to make Pokéballs; I definitely wouldn't have been able to do that on my own."

"You're sweet, Lucas. You really are." Akari finally relinquished a tiny smile. "I appreciate you coming to try and make me feel better, but I just want to try and get some rest. I'm exhausted, and I just can't handle it anymore."

"I understand…but I really don't think you should be alone right now. I know if I were in your position, I'd want someone to be there just so I could lean on them." Lucas took a deep breath before continuing. "If you'll let me, Akari, I wouldn't mind staying up with you until you manage to fall asleep. I promise to give you your space, but I want to be there for you."

Akari blushed at the very idea, keeping her head down so Lucas couldn't see her reaction. She said nothing for several moments, before finally turning her head ever so slightly so she could subtly nod at him. "Okay."

"Great." Lucas smiled and stood up, extending his hand so Akari could bring herself to her feet. "I promise, we'll figure this out together, and I won't leave your side no matter what. It's the least I can do for you."

She hesitated, her scarf covering her face all the way up to her cheeks to hide the blood rushing up to them as she accepted his hand and got back to her feet. "Thank you…just give me a few moments, I'll let you know when it's alright to come in."

"Okay." Lucas nodded as she disappeared into her room, closing the door behind her. He couldn't help but put himself in her shoes as he stood there and waited. The terror she must've felt when her own reflection stared back at her, on the brink of death no less. He then felt a surge of adrenaline shoot through his body, as the memory of seeing the girl he thought was Akari returned to him.

He wouldn't dare assume that the feeling he had could even come close to what Akari was feeling right now…but he knew what true fear felt like. In that one moment when he thought he'd found Akari dead, he'd never been more afraid.

"It looks as if you've got quite a mystery on your hands!"

"Gah!" Lucas nearly jumped out of his shoes, reaching for Rowlet's Pokéball as he turned around to face his assailant, only to sigh and basically collapse to the ground as he fought to calm his heart when he saw who it was. "Volo. Why do you keep sneaking up on people, dude? Seriously, scaring your customers can't be good for business."

"You'd be surprised how effective making yourself memorable can be." The tall blond man chuckled. "There are many merchants in the Ginkgo Guild, but how many of them do you remember by name besides yours truly?"

"Just you. But I haven't been here long. You're the only Ginkgo Guild merchant I've met so far."

"Fair enough, but you won't catch the others giving free samples to customers before they make a purchase." Volo said pointedly with a smile. "That includes free advice. How goes the Back Strike technique?"

"It's been helpful." Lucas finally stood back up and dusted himself off. "Look, Volo, it's been a really long day and I'm wiped out. So could we pick this up tomorrow?"

"I can't help but notice that your quarters are on the other end of the village. Which begs the question, why are you here in front of Akari's room?"

"Dude, you don't even live in the village, how do you know that?"

"A good merchant always gets to know his customers!" Volo replied smoothly. "But back to the matter at hand, I've been hearing rumors that we have two more sky-fallers like yourself holed up in the village. Could that have something to do with why you're so exhausted?"

Lucas withheld himself from grunting, struggling to come up with an answer. If Volo was asking, it was either because he was genuinely curious, or because he already knew the answer and wanted to test and see if he would tell the truth. "We have two new people in the village," He finally said. "I don't know for sure if they're like me or not."

"Alright, that's fair. No shame in wanting proof before believing something." Volo replied sagely. "However, faith does seem to play a large part in the culture surrounding the Hisui Region, doesn't it? You've heard of the Diamond and Pearl clans, right?"

"I've heard them being mentioned a couple of times, but that's about it, why?"

"You'd best get acquainted with them in a hurry. They've been around since long before the Galaxy Expedition Team got here." Volo replied pointedly. "I suspect you'll be running into them a lot more pretty soon, so get ready! And with that, I bid you a good evening!"

Lucas raised an eyebrow as he watched Volo walk out of the village, waving cordially to the Security Corps Member on his way. "That guy is just weird."

"Is he gone?"

Lucas gasped quietly, turning to see Akari peeking out from behind her door, only enough that he could see her eye. "Yeah, he's gone."

"Okay…you can come in now."

Lucas hesitated, seeing her close her door before he could even come in. Steeling himself, he slowly slid the door open, keeping his eyes to the ground until he could turn his back and close the door behind him. "Akari, I hope you know that-"

He froze in place after turning around to face her, the words dying on his tongue as he soaked in her visage. Akari was standing off to the side, looking at the floor as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. She'd removed her bandana and allowed her hair to flow freely down her back, and dressed in a casual but very warm looking kimono that covered everything above her ankles.

But what really struck him was how vulnerable she looked. Once the shock of seeing Akari without her uniform wore off, a different kind of energy rushed through his heart, a protective instinct that demanded he do everything he could to make Akari smile again. Seeing her eyes bloodshot from all the shed tears, he could even see her trembling ever so slightly from all the stress she was under.

He had to do something.

Slowly walking towards her, flinching slightly when she turned to watch his approach, Lucas looked her in the eyes and gently placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a firm but reassuring squeeze to say that he was there for her.

Akari nodded at him, a silent thank you for his support as she laid down on her futon and pulled the blanket up over herself, resting on her back and staring up at the ceiling for a few moments. Then she finally spoke up, as she turned her head to look up at her companion. "Thank you for staying with me, Lucas."

"Hey, no problem." Lucas smiled softly as he sat down next to her, being careful to stay a respectable distance away. "I've got your back, Akari. Just like you've had mine since I arrived here. As long as I'm around, you can count on me for anything."

At last, Akari smiled a real, sincere smile, as she lurched towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist, her head resting against his side. "Thank you, again. You may not have been here long, but you've already made all our lives so much better. Or at the very least, my life is better with you in it. So thank you."

"The feeling's mutual." Lucas placed a hand on the small of her back, rubbing his thumb gently against the concealed skin. "Get some rest, I'll be right here if you need me. I'm not going anywhere."

She nodded, and got back on her futon and rolled onto her side, sighing deeply as she finally let some of the tension release. "Goodnight, Lucas."

"Goodnight, Akari."


Being a leader of the Galaxy Expedition Team had its perks, but it also carried with it a heavy burden. Contrary to what many thought of her, Captain Cyllene did not lack a heart. But being in a position of leadership did not allow her the luxury of being sentimental. It was clear that Akari was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and no amount of verbal reassurance was going to change that.

If she were to call upon her own experience, Cyllene dealt with stress by binge-eating at the Wallflower…which was not a suggestion she would offer even to her worst enemy. The level of extra work she had to put in to maintain her slim figure was grueling.

Yes, she had some vanity too, not that she would ever admit it to anyone.

Left without a more viable alternative, Cyllene opted to try and focus Akari's mind on her work instead. Truthfully, she hadn't expected her to take the order well. At this point, all she could do was hope that Akari stayed strong and that Lucas would support her in her time of need.

Cyllene had more pressing matters to attend to, such as the third stranger to appear in the village within a one week span. This one, however, was particularly unnerving. It was difficult to fathom that a face she recognized could tumble out of the sky like Lucas and Ash. But whoever this girl was, she was the spitting image of Akari, and Cyllene was still trying to figure out what to do with that information.

As a leader, she'd learned to try and tackle problems one at a time. Put out the big fires first, and then work on the little ones after. Hence, the first and most pressing issue…would this Akari-lookalike even survive the night? That was the question she now had for the nurse in charge.

"Captain Pesselle, how are they doing?"

The pink-haired nurse turned to face Cyllene, shaking her head as she again attempted to take the girl's vitals. "Ash is unconscious, but he should be coming around soon enough. The Abomasnow's Blizzard attack was strong but he was brought back fast enough that there's a very slim chance of any lasting damage."

"And what of the girl?"

Pesselle shook her head again. "The frostbite was severe, Cyllene. Quite frankly, I fully expected that she would lose some of her limbs, if she even survived at all."

Cyllene raised an eyebrow at the nurse's pause. "However…?"

"However, in spite of what should have happened, her recovery thus far has been nothing short of miraculous. Blackened extremities gaining their color back, blisters fading to nothing. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it myself."

"Is she even human?" Cyllene asked as she looked over the sleeping girl up close. "Presumably she fell out of the rift; maybe she's some sort of shape-shifting Pokémon, or another form of being altogether."

"I can understand why you'd think that, but all of the tests I've run say that she's just as human as you and I." Pesselle sighed and sat down in a nearby chair, slouching forward with fatigue. "I don't know, maybe I overlooked something. Maybe she isn't human but she can do such a good job of hiding it that there's no way to tell the difference until it's too late."

Cyllene said nothing for several moments, looking back and forth between the two strangers laying in their beds recovering. Next to Ash, the rogue Pikachu was curled up and sleeping peacefully, snuggled up near the boy's chest as if it was the most natural thing in the world. It was unnerving to see how comfortable Pokémon seemed to be around him, as if he was one of them himself.

As for the girl, Cyllene couldn't ignore the bizarre sense of relief bubbling up inside her. She knew this was not Akari, and yet her mind and heart were struggling to separate the two. She had to keep mentally reminding herself that this was a stranger, someone she didn't even know if they could trust, or if they should even try at this point.

But still, as she was virtually identical to her valued Survey Corps member, Cyllene was glad to know she would recover…which only left her with more problems. What would she do when this girl inevitably woke up? What if she really was Akari, just from an alternate world of some kind? So many unknowns, so much potential danger.

Clenching her fists in frustration, Cyllene stormed out of the room and locked her eyes onto the Security Corps member on duty. "Bagin!"

"Y-Yes, Captain!" The man stood at attention, struggling to not flinch at the steely gaze she placed on him.

"I want three Security Corps members watching that room at all times. Report any activity to me immediately!"

"Understood!" But then Bagin blinked, briefly turning to watch his agitated superior walk out. "Captain Cyllene, where will we find you?"

"The Wallflower." She looked over her shoulder with a deadpan expression. "To drown my sorrows in potato mochi."

She exited just as Beauregard entered, his newly-acquired Wurmple wriggling right with him. "It's never a good sign when Captain Cyllene goes on one of her binge eating sessions." He said anxiously. "What's been going on in here, Bagin?"

Bagin shrugged and shook his head. "I don't understand most of it, but I'm sure it has to do with those two kids they brought in, that new kid and the girl who looks just like Akari."

"You know, I had to look twice when I saw them drag her in here. I thought it actually was Akari until I saw her come in with everyone else." Beauregard sighed heavily. "What do you suppose it all means?"

"No idea, Beau." Bagin turned towards the door leading to the Medical Corps office. "All I know is that we better make sure nothing happens tonight, or Captain Cyllene's gonna chew out more than just a dozen plates of mochi."

Beauregard shivered in remembrance. "I'm still reeling from the last dressing down she gave us. And that was months ago."

"She makes sure you never forget, that's for sure." Bagin walked towards the office, where Captain Pesselle was leaning over the two young patients and writing things down on a notepad. "Captain Pesselle, is there anything we should know about?"

"I see Captain Cyllene has summoned you two to watch over our patients…" Pesselle rolled her eyes. "Or should I say, watch out for them." Without another word, Pesselle placed her notes down on her desk and walked towards the door. "Please, gentlemen. Try not to cause a ruckus. And if they happen to wake up, please come and get me. I'll be in my quarters for the rest of the evening." As she walked past them to leave, she briefly looked over her shoulder. "And make sure you come and get me before Captain Cyllene."

"Yes, ma'am." Beauregard saluted along with his fellow guard as they watched the pink-haired woman leave. Once she was out of sight, he relaxed his stance and glanced over to Bagin. "Get them both at once?"

"Definitely." Bagin gave a tired stretch as he started headed towards the door to the building. "Well, Cyllene said she wanted three of us watching them, so I'm gonna go get Miki and have her join us. Be right back."

"Seeya." Beauregard rolled his eyes. "In like two hours." He muttered under his breath before looking down at his Wurmple. "Well, Wurmple…looks like it's just you and me now." The guard peeked inside the now darkened room, where he could see the teens in their beds from behind their privacy screens. "Sometimes I wonder if you know more about what happens out there in the world than we do, Wurmple. You're a Pokémon, after all…what do you think is up with those kids?"

The Wurmple just shook its head despondently, as Beauregard sighed and shifted his position back outside the door. "I wish I could understand you, Wurmple. I really do. It would make learning about you and all the other Pokémon in the world so much easier. If only I could know how you were feeling."

He stood there pondering what it would be like if such a thing were possible…completely oblivious to the faint blue glow emanating from the room, only to fade away moments later without anyone ever realizing it had happened.


Akari awoke from her slumber with a start, as she usually did. In a world where Pokémon could attack at any moment, she had learned to be a light sleeper, both to her advantage and her detriment, she'd soon concluded. Sighing silently as she hid under her blanket to block out the sun, she soon surrendered any hope of getting a few extra minutes of sleep in, since her heart had already begun to race. "Another day."

As she rolled over onto her side, her eyes widened as she noticed that she wasn't alone in her quarters, and that's when the events of the night before came rushing back to the forefront of her mind.

Lucas was there, leaning back against one of the support beams as he slept. He'd done exactly what he said he would, watched over her until she was finally able to doze off. She couldn't help but smile, her admiration for him growing more by the second. That he would be willing to devote his time and energy to making sure she felt safe, in spite of the fact that he'd just hours before nearly froze to death in the Alabaster Icelands. It spoke to the true nature of his heart.

Clearly, she was lucky to know him.

She quietly crawled over to him, gently grasping his shoulder and giving him a little shake to try and rouse him. "Lucas?"

It didn't take much to pull him from his slumber; his eyes opened almost immediately, only halfway though as he was still clearly exhausted. "Oh, good morning, Akari." He smiled in spite of his fatigue. "How are you feeling?"

"Better than you I'd imagine." She smiled sympathetically at him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You poor thing, you must've been so uncomfortable last night. You could've gone to your own quarters whenever you wanted, you know!"

"I know." Lucas closed his eyes and sighed, the calm smile never leaving his face even as he rested his head against the beam. "But I wanted to make sure I was here for you in case you needed me for anything."

Such a casual admission. Akari's heart fluttered at that, and she could feel the heat rising to her face once again without her approval. Quickly turning away to avoid being noticed, she started to roll up her covers and put them away. "Well, thank you for that. It means a lot to me to know I can count on you."

"Of course." Lucas took his cue to leave as he stood up and gave a stretch, rolling his neck to work the kinks out. "Well, I'll be in the village if you need me. I should probably check in with Prof. Laventon to see if he has any tasks for me today.."

"Lucas!" She suddenly turned around to face him, still blushing as she realized she'd shouted louder than she meant to. "Um…listen." She was much quieter now as she looked towards the ground. "Listen…do you have a bit of time after that? There's something I could use your help with."

"Alright," Lucas nodded. "No problem."

"Thank you!" Akari turned her back to him once again, making preparations to switch back into her uniform. "I'll be waiting for you at the training grounds, then." She then halfway looked over her shoulder. "You might wanna make sure you put together a good team of Pokémon for this."

"Oh…" Lucas was surprised by the request, but simply shrugged his shoulders and nodded at her. "Sure thing, Akari. Is this another lesson kind of thing?"

"You might say that," she replied. "I'll see you there, Lucas…and thank you again, for everything."

"My pleasure." Lucas took his leave, exiting her quarters and closing the door behind him as he made his way towards the Wallflower to try and find the professor. And as luck would have it, there he was, talking to Beni rather animatedly about something. "Oh boy, what's got Beni all riled up now?" He got a good idea of what it was when he saw Beni's eyes glance towards him slightly, and his forehead creased in apparent frustration. "Okay…maybe now's a bad time. Guess I'll go and check in with Captain Cyllene first."

He started walking towards the large building in the very back of the village, Galaxy Expedition Team HQ. It wasn't long before he spotted Captain Cyllene briefly greeting the Security Corps member and heading inside to begin her day of work. He broke into a brisk jog to catch up to her. "Hey, Beauregard! How's Wurmple doing?"

"It's doing well, I think." He said it without a smile, and as soon as Lucas stepped foot on the first stair up to the doors leading to the HQ, Beauregard barricaded Lucas's path with a neutral line on his face. "Sorry, Lucas. I've been given explicit orders from Captain Cyllene to not let you or Akari into the headquarters until further notice."

Lucas reeled back in shock, a brief flare of frustration igniting in him before confusion took over. If it had just been him that had been barred from the HQ, he could've chalked it up to the continued distrust that he was still fighting to overcome. But to ban Akari too? This was more than just the Galaxy Expedition leadership not trusting him. "Beauregard, what's going on? Is this about what happened yesterday?"

"It's a number of things, actually." Beauregard looked around briefly to see if anyone was listening, then he leaned forward to whisper in Lucas's ear. "Last night something crazy happened."

"What?"

"While we were keeping an eye on the two strangers, a massive bolt of lightning came from the rift, the likes of which we've never seen before, not even during the most severe storms!"

"You're kidding." Lucas's eyes widened. "I feel like that's something I would've noticed! How in the world did I sleep through it?!"

"You went through a lot, Lucas." Beauregard shrugged. "Exhaustion has a way of forcing even the strongest of us to go down for a while. In any case, with that strange lightning, and of course the two strangers like you to deal with, Commander Kamado has called for an emergency meeting. Until then, you and Akari aren't allowed inside."

"Right." Lucas breathed slowly through his nose for a moment. "Okay, thanks, Beauregard. Guess I'll see you around."

"Absolutely." Beauregard smiled slightly. "Believe me, it's not my idea. You've already proven yourself as far as I'm concerned. Maybe in this case, they're just trying to protect you kids from whatever's going on."

Lucas didn't reply and instead just turned to leave. He wandered aimlessly through the village as his mind swirled with thoughts. "Protect us?" He scoffed to himself. "I find that pretty hard to believe. They'll send us out into the middle of nowhere to face wild Pokémon and freeze to death, but a lightning storm is enough to send everyone into a panic? Please."

Sarcasm wasn't his usual M.O., but Lucas had reached a point where it felt like no matter what he did, he was wasting his time. He let out an exhausted sigh. Maybe what he really needed was some sleep. Then his eyes wandered over to the pastures, where all of the captured Pokémon were interacting with each other.

Aside from placing the Pokémon he captured there - as per orders - Lucas hadn't spent much time at the pastures. What was the point, when most of the Pokémon he captured were for research purposes and not for actual training? But as he leaned against the wooden fence, he noticed that something interesting had changed in the behavior of the Pokémon.

One of the first things Akari taught him was the basics of certain Pokémon traits. For instance, Shinx and Buizel, two normally territorial Pokémon, suddenly seemed to be getting along just fine after being captured by him and taken to the pastures. Even more amazing, the two aforementioned Pokémon noticed him standing by the gate, and they both rushed over to greet him as if they'd known him forever.

Lucas smiled as he reached through the gaps in the fence and gently rubbed under the chins of both his captured Pokémon. "Hey, guys." He began reflecting how differently people thought of Pokémon in this time period. It also made him wonder about Ash, who evidently came from a similar time period to his own.

The sheer willpower Ash had to have to put himself into harm's way like that - it really was impressive. He didn't dodge, or even try to bait the Abomasnow into redirecting its attack. He leaped in front of it, dared it to attack the rogue Pikachu and took the hit without a moment's hesitation. It was obvious that Ash truly had a heart for Pokémon, a trait that apparently hadn't faded after the loss of his memory.

He hoped that Ash and the other girl would be alright. Then he scoffed at himself, shaking his head as he realized what was happening. "That's why they're keeping us out. Captain Cyllene doesn't want Akari to worry even more." The realization made him feel bad for suspecting the rest of the team. Maybe he needed to be more trusting too. "Come on, guys." Lucas pulled out some Pokéballs and gathered together his team of six, looking at the last Pokéball upon the creature's withdrawal into it. "Let's go meet up with Akari."


The light was blinding, brighter than anything he'd ever seen in his life. What was it coming from?! Ash desperately fought to make out any sort of figure, squinting to shield his eyes but also trying to see. But his efforts were to no avail as the light surrounded him from all directions.

Ash could hear voices, like whispers barely brushing against his ear before fading away entirely, completely alien and yet strangely comforting. As if he knew what these voices were instinctively, even if his conscious mind couldn't grasp them. "Who's there?"

He received no answer to his call. He simply continued floating in a void of pure, golden light, aimlessly and with no means of traversal to try and get out of this place. But then again, this place was very warm, and the last thing he remembered was being incredibly cold. Did he really want to leave this place if what was waiting for him was so much worse?

"Awaken, Chosen One."

Ash's eyes widened as he swiveled his head around, looking for the source of that voice he definitely heard this time. "Hello?" He heard nothing once again, and he clenched his fists in frustration as he strained to open his eyes just a little bit more, the light not fading for an instant. "Hey, whoever's out there, this isn't funny! Let me go!"

"Do not forget thy task, Chosen One. Thou must return from whence thou came, and complete the task I've set before thee."

"Task?" Ash wracked his brain for answers, gasping when he suddenly remembered the message he saw on his Pokédex. "You mean that weird message about Lake Guardians? Are you the one that gave it to me?"

"Fear not, all will be made clear soon. I have sent someone who will guide thee, and show the path thou must follow, and restore that which has been lost."

"Why are you talking in riddles?!" Ash grabbed his head and grunted in frustration. "Just tell me what you want me to do!"

"Awaken, Chosen One. Awaken!"


Ash shouted as he was abruptly torn from his sleep, and seconds later, he felt his entire body violently tingling as what could only be an electric shock tore through his system, leaving him twitching for several seconds after the shock wore off. "What a wakeup call…"

"Excellent, you're awake."

"Huh?" Ash turned in his bed to see two women looking at him from the doorway. One was Captain Cyllene, the other he didn't recognize. Then they approached him while still keeping a respectable distance away. "Captain Cyllene? And…sorry, I didn't catch your name?"

"Pesselle. Captain Pesselle, at your service."

"Okay, nice to meet ya." Ash laid back down on his back, sighing as his body came down from the adrenaline high that came with the electric shock. Upon turning his head, he noticed the Pikachu from the Alabaster Icelands, looking up at him with a curious expression. "Hey, you're that Pikachu that was fighting off the Abomasnow and Glalie, aren't you?"

"Pika chu." (Yeah I am.)

"Well, I'm glad you're okay. You must've been protecting someone really important considering how hard you were fighting, weren't you?"

"Pika." (Yeah.)

"Was it another Pikachu?"

The Pikachu's ears drooped, shaking its head as it hopped over to the other bed, where the girl from inside the cave was still sleeping. "Pika pi chu." (It was her.)

Ash sat up, his muscles protesting as the soreness returned in full force. Nevertheless, he was able to look past the privacy screens and get a look at the person next to him. And the moment he saw her, his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, and less than a second later he was hit with a headache that laid him back out onto his bed, grasping at his head and groaning as his mind raced with blurry images he couldn't understand. "What's happening?!"

"Pika pika?!" (What's wrong?!)

Ash heard the frantic footsteps of the two women coming over as Pesselle spoke up. "What's the matter?! Are you in pain?!"

"My head!" Ash groaned again, breathing heavily as he tried to get past this sudden surge of pain. He could feel the veins in his head pulsing as he closed his eyes, trying to block out whatever was happening. "It hurts!"

"Cyllene, get me a medicinal leek and one of our King's Leaf powders!"

"Wait!" Ash shouted suddenly. "Wait just a minute." His breathing remained heavy, but it started to slow, and soon he was down to a deep but steady breath as he slowly opened his eyes. "It's starting to go away now…I'm okay."

"Forgive me if I'm skeptical." Cyllene sighed and placed her hands behind her back. "While I'm satisfied to see you've survived your trial, I'm sure you can understand why I have some doubts about allowing you to join our ranks. You were rescued by Lucas and Professor Laventon, and their testimonies tell me you certainly have a way with Pokémon…but you are reckless, and now I find that you are not the only stranger besides Lucas that fell out of the rift."

"I guess not." Ash hesitated, but dared to glance over at the girl again, sighing with relief when his head didn't explode into another round of splitting pain. "There's something about her though, I can't put my finger on it, but I feel like we're connected somehow."

Cyllene raised an eyebrow. "You're saying you know her?"

"I'm saying that I feel like I should know her." Ash kicked his feet over the cot, as he stood up to go over to the girl.

Pesselle was about to protest, but Cyllene grabbed her by the shoulder, shaking her head firmly and keeping the nurse from getting in the way. "Let's see what he does, be on your guard."

Ash sat on the edge of the bed, staring intensely at the girl, the sense of familiarity almost overwhelming his senses as every instinct inside him screamed that there was something about this person that he should know, but couldn't figure out. Then he looked over at the Pikachu, who was looking back at him with a curious expression, and that's when he felt another headache, and he grabbed his head again and groaned, trying to block out the pain. "I'm okay," He sighed as he waved off the two women in the room. "It's already fading."

"These headaches can't be normal." Pesselle shook her head. "Perhaps you were struck by an unknown Pokémon attack before the professor found you on the beach?"

"No, I don't think that's it." Ash looked back at the Pikachu, his forehead creased with a look of concentration. "You can feel it too, can't you, Pikachu?" The boy said knowingly. "There's…a bond between us."

"Pika chu…" (I guess…)

"And we share a bond with her, too." Ash looked down at the blue-haired girl again. "Maybe…we all come from the same place." He whipped his head around to Cyllene and Pesselle. "Has she been awake at all since we got here?"

"No," Pesselle shook her head, her hands folded with anxiety over this whole thing. "Her recovery has been nothing short of miraculous, but she hasn't woken up."

Ash stared back down at the girl, watching the gentle rising and falling of her chest as she slowly breathed. The sheer familiarity of this girl causing a stir in his chest he couldn't explain, building to the point where it transformed itself into a need to help her, as his eyes became steely with determination and willpower.

"What are you doing?!"

"Wait, Pesselle." Cyllene held the nurse back before she could interfere with Ash's sudden actions. "Let's see what he does."

Only one thing was on Ash's mind, and that was helping this girl. The focus was so single-minded that the entire world seemed to fade around him, encompassing only him and her in a bizarre mindscape in shades of blue, pink and purple.

He placed his hands on the sides of her head, his face drawing closer to hers until it was mere centimeters away. "Can you hear me? I'm here."

Another voice filled his mind, a strange combination that sounded like two different voices melded together, with the more feminine one taking priority over the slightly more neutral one. "Help me, please. It's dark. I'm scared."

"Don't worry, I'm going to help you. Listen to the sound of my voice. Follow it back to the light."

"I can feel that you're afraid too."

"I am, but I'm going to be strong for the both of us. Let's work together."

"O-Okay."

Ash felt a sudden burst of strength, like he was invincible and could do anything he put his mind to if he just tried. With laser-sharp focus he began channeling that strength into her, feeling it drain from him slowly as his hands glowed an ethereal blue. "Use my strength, my willpower, and come back!"

As Ash flowed more and more energy into her, he could feel his strength waning, if he kept this up much longer he felt he would almost certainly pass out. But he wouldn't give up, not for anything. He redoubled his efforts, pushing every last ounce of power into her in the hopes she would return from the brink.

"You have to stop, you're hurting yourself, I can feel it!"

"No, I won't give up! I'm gonna save you!"

"I appreciate you so much for caring about me, whoever you are, but I can't let you sacrifice yourself for me!"

Ash suddenly felt a pushback of sorts, his own power being fed back into him as if she were rejecting his gift. But there was something else mixed in, a sort of warmth that was different from his own, sparking an emotional reaction he wasn't expecting as his eyes welled up with tears. "Is this what you're feeling? Why are you so sad?"

"I'm alone, and I don't know where I am. It was so cold, and I'm so confused. I can't remember anything…but there's something about you, I can't explain it, I feel safe with you…do I know you?"

"I was thinking the same thing, but that's why I have to save you. If I am your friend, what kind of a friend would I be if I didn't save you?" Ash felt another surge of strength flow into him, but this time from the girl herself as a different energy intermingled with his own…in that moment, he could feel everything she was feeling, and even impressions of the people still watching them in the real world. "Don't be afraid…I think you're right, we do know each other. I don't know how, but we can figure that out later. For now, just work with me, and we'll both be okay, I promise."

"I believe you. Thank you so much…no need to worry, right?"

That brought a smile to Ash's face, even though he couldn't explain why he felt so nostalgic. But one thing he did know, it just felt right hearing it from her. "Right, no need to worry. By the way, my name's Ash."

"Nice to meet you, Ash…I'm Dawn."

The world around them began to grow brighter, as their energies combined and filled them both with strength, until finally Dawn's eyes opened, and she smiled seeing the face of her savior for the first time.


Lucas made his way to the training grounds where Akari was standing in the middle of the battlefield. Even from a distance, he could see that Akari was trying to put on a brave face, but the stiffness in her stance betrayed her anxiety.

Off to the side, he saw her Pikachu standing there without a care in the world, not even acknowledging that Akari was there. If it weren't for the Pokéball keeping her Pikachu around, it probably would've left a long time ago. Knowing that she couldn't control it was a great deal of stress for her, Lucas felt a pang in his chest, wishing there was something he could do to help.

Finally he made his way up to her, and she fixed him with the most serious, stone-faced look he'd ever seen from her. "Thank you for coming. I know you're busy, and I know how exhausted you are."

"Don't worry about it," He smiled at her. "Anything I can do to help, I'm game."

"I'm glad you feel that way." She closed her eyes for a moment, bowing her head as she took a deep breath. "Listen, I've had an epiphany!"

"Everything alright?"

"No, and that's what this is about. You already know I've got a partner of my own, and it's clear we don't get along all that well. But we've got to work together to help complete the Pokédex!" Akari looked over to her dismissive electric-type. "I never told you what happened between us. I already told you the story of how I was attacked by those Shinx a while ago, and I had to rest for several days to recover. When we were attacked by those Shinx, I got too scared to think straight, and…I couldn't handle battling as a team." The girl sighed with frustration, her fists clenched. "Ever since then, my partner's refused to listen to anything I tell him…"

Lucas's mouth opened slightly, looking back and forth between Akari and her Pikachu, the latter of whom seemed to be giving a disapproving glare. "Akari, I'm so sorry that happened to you. I didn't know that was why Pikachu stopped listening to you."

"I haven't told anyone, not even Captain Cyllene…so please don't say anything to her."

"I won't, I promise." The boy placed a hand on his heart and gave her a solemn nod. "So why am I here?"

"Well, if I'm being honest, I'm not even sure how to order him…or rather, how to guide him in battle." Her Pikachu looked up at her and seemed to scoff at the very notion, then Akari turned her attention back to Lucas. "But watching how you and your Pokémon work together, I realized we need to do more, too…that's where you come in." Akari suddenly took on a defensive stance, her brow furrowed with determination. "So please, Lucas, have a battle with me! I want to learn how to fight effectively!"

Lucas gasped quietly, seeing the fire burning in Akari's eyes. Then he looked down at her Pikachu, who also seemed to be shocked by the sudden ferocity coming from her. "Akari, are you sure you wanna do this?"

"I've never been more sure!" Her fists clenched tighter, turning white from the exertion. "I've watched you put your life on the line over and over these past few days, facing challenges that I wouldn't even dream of taking on all on my own. And now with these two new skyfallers in the village, and one of them's my doppelganger? We have no idea what we might be coming up against! I refuse to stand by and let you face this danger alone! I'm going to help you, and in order to do that, I need to be able to battle! The only way that Pikachu and I are ever going to get over what happened is if we face the challenge head on!"

It was clear now to Lucas that Akari was dead serious about this, without even a hint of hesitation in her eyes. She wanted this, and she wasn't going to take no for an answer. "Alright then, Akari." Lucas walked over to his end of the battlefield, grasping a Pokéball in his hand. "I hope you and Pikachu are ready for this."

"We'll have to be, won't we?" Akari took her own spot on the battlefield. "Alright, Lucas, let's get started!"

"Rowlet, show 'em what you got!" Lucas summoned his grass/flying-type starter, and the little owl turned its head all the way around to look curiously at his new trainer. "We're gonna show Akari what it means to be a team, use Peck, Agile Style!" With a quick nod, Rowlet rushed over to the electric-type and swiftly tapped him on his head, then flew up into the air to get some distance. "Alright, now use Leafage!"

"No way!" Akari shouted back. "Come on, Pikachu! We're not gonna take that lying down! We're gonna fight back and we're gonna win this battle, got it?! Dodge that attack!"

Pikachu just stared up at Akari, eyes searching for something that now seemed to be absent in her gaze. Then his ear twitched. As he heard the sound of an incoming projectile, Pikachu leaped away just before Rowlet could strike. Now on all fours, his cheeks sparked with electricity. "That's the way, Pikachu! Now let's work together to win this battle! Use Thunder Wave!"

With a sudden burst of electricity, the energy surrounded Rowlet and seemed to briefly encase him, dissipating only after the little owl found himself struggling to move. "Rowlet, are you okay?!" Lucas soon received a nod from his starter, and then the boy found it in him to smile as he saw Akari doing the same. "Looks like we're already making progress! Rowlet, use Tackle!"

"Quick Attack, Pikachu!"

Now with no hesitation, Pikachu rushed to meet Rowlet's attack head on, as the two Pokémon repeatedly butted heads as they tried to overpower each other. Finally it was Rowlet who came out on top, knocking Pikachu back and forcing the electric mouse to regain his footing. But Rowlet did receive a nasty reminder of his paralysis as the electric shocks returned to stop him from pressing his attack. "Hang in there, Rowlet, we're in this together!"

"Well so are we!" Akari pointed at their target. "Pikachu, use Thunder Shock, Strong Style!"

"Rowlet, get away quick!" Lucas's order went unanswered; the paralysis left Rowlet unable to move, as Akari's Pikachu charged up a huge burst of electrical power, shocking the owl and causing him to cry out as he took the super-effective hit. "Stay with me, Rowlet!" Lucas grinned as he looked up at Akari for a moment. "You're doing great, Akari! But there's no way I'm taking it easy on you! Rowlet, let's show 'em what a great team we are! Use Leafage, and give it all you got!"

"Pikachu, dodge it!" But the electric-type was stuck in place, recovering from the exertion of using the Strong Style Thunder Shock, and there was nothing Akari could do as Rowlet pushed through the paralysis and struck with a strong grass-type attack, officially knocking Pikachu out of the battle as it slid to a stop right at the girl's feet. "Oh man…" She placed her hands on her hips and smiled with a bit of embarrassment. "Well, like always, you and your Pokémon seem to be completely in step with one another." She knelt down briefly to stand Pikachu up. "Thanks for battling so hard." She then stood up to face her opponent. "And thank you for battling us. I could be wrong, but…for a moment, I felt like Pikachu and I finally understood one another."

"That's what it seemed like to me. You both looked like you really wanted to win."

"We really did!" Akari turned to her partner. "Let's keep working at it. Okay, Pikachu?" But Akari was then given a very sour look, as the electric mouse turned his back to her and grunted. "G-Guess I was wrong, then…" Akari clenched her fists, her frustration building as she started to tremble. "No, I won't quit. I'll strive to work more as a team with my partner, the way you do…assuming Pikachu and I can…bridge some gaps."

"Your Pikachu doesn't hate you. He just doesn't like losing, that's all."

Both Lucas and Akari gasped at the new voice, as they turned and saw Ash standing there with the rogue Pikachu at his feet, watching them with obvious interest…but the shocking part was the girl standing next to him, wearing some borrowed clothes that were about one size too large for her…and she looked almost identical to Akari, whose pupils had shrunk to the size of pinholes upon seeing her doppelganger up and about. "It's you…"

"Whoa, I just noticed!" Ash exclaimed as he looked back and forth between the two girls. "You and her look exactly alike! Or almost, anyway. You're a little smaller than she is, Dawn." Ash turned to his Survey Corps member friend. "Lucas, who is she?"

"Ash…well, I'm glad you're alright." Lucas stepped closer to his teammate, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder to try and loosen her up. "This is who I was telling you about…this is Akari."

"That's Akari?!"

Tired of being left out of the discussion, Dawn took a breath and stepped up to her slightly older doppelganger, smiling up at her and extending a hand out for her to shake. "It's nice to meet you both. My name's Dawn. Something tells me we have a lot to talk about."


So many shapes, so many colors, all familiar and yet fuzzy at the same time. There were voices and sounds, all fighting for attention and turning into a garbled jumble in the process. It was overwhelming, trying to make sense of it all.

"Take heart, my strength is with you."

Suddenly the images started to come into focus, the sounds started to become clearer. At last, there was clarity! Everything made sense after what seemed like an eternity of confusion and randomness.

"Seek out the Emissary, and then bring your friends together again."

The images began to fade as darkness fell; the sounds were all silenced with only the echo of the wise-sounding voice speaking remaining. What did that mean? Who was the Emissary? They sounded important, whoever they were.

A new feeling, something fuzzy…and swift bursts of wind? Finally the world came into focus again, and there was a large Pokémon inches away, apparently sniffing but with a strange smile on its face. "Whoa!"

"Sneasler, there you are!" Another person appeared, a man with a tattered jacket and hat. His sideburns were unkempt, and a small beard was protruding out from his chin, and his eyes were wide in shock. "Oh dear. You look as if you've been through a lot. Judging by your clothing, you're not from around here either…might I ask your name?"

It took a few moments, but a name finally came to the surface. "Brock…my name is Brock."

"Well, Brock…pleasure to meet you. Ingo is my name, I'm a warden for the Pearl Clan here in the Hisui Region, and this Sneasler…who seems quite fond of you, is my charge."

"Uh well…pleasure to meet you I guess. Where did you say I was?"

"The Hisui Region, sir. More specifically, inside the Wayward Cave of the Coronet Highlands. I can only assume that you are like me, a lost soul with no memory of his past life. We've heard so many reports of people like us as of late, it's truly a mystery."

"I…I guess so, I don't-" Brock suddenly screamed in agony, as he collapsed on the ground, the large Pokémon near him looking on in concern. "M-My head! It hurts!" Sounds, visions, voices, all racing across his mind at a breakneck pace, so fast that it was impossible to make out even the smallest detail. "Make it stop, make it stop!"

"Sneasler, hurry!" Ingo exclaimed. "Maybe the Pearl Clan healers can help him! We'll take him to Irida at once!"

"No, wait!" Almost instantly, the pain vanished, replaced by a feeling of clarity…like everything made sense. "I'm…I'm okay." Brock stood up, his heart racing as he processed everything he was seeing. "I understand."

"You understand what, Brock?"

"You're right, Ingo. I am like you; I fell out of the space-time rift too. But there's one big difference between us."

"And what pray tell is that?"

Brock turned towards the entrance of the cave, walking towards the vast wilderness and stopping right at the opening to take in everything he was seeing. Then he turned to look over his shoulder at the warden, his eyes set with determination. "I remember everything."


A/N: And there you have it ladies and gentlemen, Dawn and Akari finally meet face to face, and Brock has been found...and he doesn't have amnesia?! Feel free to speculate on what's going on, I love when I can provoke some theories and thoughts lol. But I'm sure the question everyone is asking by now is this...where is Misty?! Patience everyone, our favorite redhead will be appearing soon. Promise.

Big thanks once again to zdbztumble on Tumblr and the official Pokeshipping Discord server for being my beta reader once more. He's done a phenomenal job making sure all these newest chapters are optimized for you all.

As a reminder, if anyone has any interest in joining that Discord server, just send me a DM and I'll make an invite link for you to follow! We've got plenty of still passionate Pokeshippers for you all to interact with!

With that said, the next chapter is already halfway finished, so hopefully it won't be long before I update again! See you next time, and make sure to leave a review and let me know what you thought! ^^