Chapter 2 – Smile

The Paldean Pokémon League's Main Compound played host to many offices, conference rooms, battle arenas, healing stations, green rooms, employee apartments, open-air Pokémon Pastures, and countless other amenities. It was one of the grandest structures in the entire region and on any given day one could enter to find neat and orderly spaces, clean and sparkling rooms, and many different types of people working in near-flawless harmony with one another.

Well…unless you went to the office of the Head of Regional Security.

Since Penny had been appointed to the position, that once spotless room had undergone a startling transformation. The previously stark walls were now filled with all manner of colorful memorabilia, most of which had to do with Eevee and all of its evolutions – photos, posters, and canvases hung from the walls themselves while beneath them sat shelves sporting a multitude of figurines, stuffed animals, and even artisan crafted glass sculptures.

The uniformly colored floor had been covered up with three enormous rugs, each sporting a different Pokémon's face – the large pink one showcased Sylveon, the pastel green featured Leafeon, and the powder blue starred Glaceon. Thanks to the grouping of fluffy floorings, you couldn't even make out the previously white base of the room. And none of this was to mention the several large beanbag chairs that sported colors of the other Eevee evolution lines, the most prominent of which were black, purple, and red.

Then there was the desk itself. When Penny had arrived, she had been both stunned and slightly annoyed that the previous tenant had been heading up League operations with a single computer and two small monitors. When asked if that wasn't enough to do the job, the young woman gave a face of complete and utter disbelief before answering:

"That's like asking me if shorts and a t-shirt would be enough clothing to spend a straight week wandering around on Glaseado Mountain – of course not!"

To that end, Penny had set up two separate, high-spec computers with dedicated water-based cooling systems and individual triple monitor setups. To the untrained eye, it looked a bit extravagant. But to a master of her craft, each piece allowed for her work to be accomplished effectively and efficiently.

It hadn't stopped others from commenting that her workstation looked more like the kind of supercomputer setup necessary for Hoenn's Mossdeep Space Center to put an astronaut into orbit than something for managing Paldea's security efforts, but she was happy with it and more than able to stay far ahead of her work as a result.

Even the Elite Four's Rika, strict rule observer and loudest opponent of the chaotic changes Penny had made to the office, ceased her complaining when she witnessed the impeccable job the new Head of Regional Security was doing…but it still didn't stop her from casting some sidelong glances at the coloring of the room once in a while. Even still, she had mostly let the issue go which made Penny feel much more relaxed in her workspace.

Today, however, the new Head of Security found herself in a bad mood. Nothing had gone right since Penny had awakened that morning. She had missed her alarm, throwing her entire routine into chaos. Instead of a calm, nutritional breakfast, she had scarfed down a bagel while trying to throw on her outfit for the day with just one hand. Instead of a calm stroll through the Pokémon Pastures to say hello to her beloved VeeVees and offer them to join her in the office, it had been a frantic shout out the window that she loved them and would visit after work. And instead of arriving at her 'supercomputer' feeling rested and refreshed, she hobbled into the room and threw her bag on the floor in frustration, having stubbed her toe against the door frame on her way out of her apartment.

"Nothing else better go wrong today. If one more thing does, I'm gonna lose my mind," she seethed to herself.

Luckily, things in Paldea were, as a rule, generally pretty calm. The League had long since set up sensors and live cameras at points of particular risk or import. None of these showed anything out of the ordinary at the moment, aside from the one issue Penny already knew about; that would be the focus of today's work.

It wasn't just the League's efforts that gave them plenty of information, though. Penny herself had devised a system of aerial surveillance using electronic drones and even some Pokémon capable of flight that were willing to assist in order to give her even more real-time access to the region.

Since the Area Zero incident seven years ago, nothing of huge import had occurred in Paldea, but she wasn't willing to take the chance that it might, certainly not on her watch. To that end, her regional surveillance team included some powerful Pokémon that were willing to descend into the Great Crater itself, a place her drones couldn't operate well in. That team consisted of a few hand-selected and well-trained Pokémon that wouldn't be overwhelmed by the powerful creatures that called the depths of the Crater their home, species like Dragonite, Corviknight, Hydreigon, Salamence – plenty of powerful Dragon and Flying types personally trained by Hassel and Larry.

Luckily, they hadn't ever turned up anything of particular note either, though the camera feed always grew fuzzier the closer to the Zero Lab they got. Penny theorized it was a result of the high concentration of Terastal Crystals, but she wasn't entirely certain. Regardless, Area Zero had remained quiet since the last time she'd been there with Nemona, Arven, and-

"Juliana!"

"Hey! Good to see you, Penny!"

The young woman in question had just entered the office with a cheery grin on her face, waving as she saw Penny in front of her complex computer system. Juliana's style had changed quite a bit over the years, and it went a lot further than just being notably taller than she once was.

Back when Penny first met her, Juliana had worn her auburn hair in a braid on her right side. After her journey to Kitakami, she had come back wearing a very complex side ponytail that looked more like some type of elaborate wing than anything else. Apparently, that girl Carmine's grandmother had shown her how to do it. She had gone back and forth between the two for a long time until, for the last three years, she had grown her hair out some and now wore it in a long bob style that stopped just above her shoulders.

"You know, I always forget your hair gets a little wavy at the ends when you let it get longer like this. I like it," Penny noted.

Juliana just gave her a warm smile before strolling across the rugs and plopping down in a giant beanbag chair.

"Thanks! I like your hair too; you growing it out?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm trying to at least. I'm not sure if it looks good on top of the multicolor thing though…"

"What are you talking about? It all looks amazing!"

Penny felt her heart grow light from Juliana's smile and kind words alone. She'd always been able to do that. It took so little effort for her to lift her friends' spirits.

"Thanks, Juliana."

"Any time!"

Penny watched in amusement as she leaned into the beanbag chair, craning her neck back until she was looking at one of the shelves behind her from an upside-down vantage point. She reached out and plucked one of the stuffed Eevee from the shelf before righting herself, drawing the plushy into her arms.

"Do you mind? It's just so cute I couldn't keep my hands off," she admitted with a sheepish grin.

"Not at all! That's why they're there, after all. I'm not the type of collector who just wants to stare at her collection; I want all of it to be loved and cared for."

"I like that! If I ever start collecting things, I'm sure I'll feel the same way."

"You kinda collect Pokémon, don't you?"

"Hmm…maybe I should've said if I ever collect things specifically to display. But honestly, I think of 'collecting Pokémon' as 'making new friends' so even that feels a little different!"

"You really are a gem, Juliana."

"Don't you mean a 'jewel?'" she quipped back, winking as she cuddled the stuffed Eevee.

Penny couldn't help but chuckle.

"Hah. Well done, you win that one."

"Thanks! I tried real hard."

"I'll bet."

"Anyway, Nemo said you had something for me?"

"Oh! Yep, sure do," Penny reminded herself, spinning in her seat and letting her hands rest on the nearest keyboard. "Hang on, I'll pull it up on the map."

Juliana hopped out of her beanbag and wandered over to the desk, leaning on the back of the chair while holding the Eevee plush in her left hand and letting it sit on Penny's shoulder.

"You know, every time I see this command center, I'm even more impressed than the last. You have a whole monitor that's literally just a live map of Paldea. That's so cool!"

"You're the only person who appreciates that," Penny sighed. "Rika came by earlier to ask about a migration of wild Beedrill that's supposed to be passing through the southern part of the region. When I pulled it up on the map to show her, she just nodded and scowled at my rug."

Juliana rubbed the back of her neck and laughed.

"Yeah, Rika's not the most laid-back person, is she?"

"Definitely not…but oh well. So! If you take a look at this spot," she began, pulling up a section in the northern area of the map, "there's a large group of Tauros starting to congregate here."

"Huh, so there is," Juliana mused as her eyes trained onto the live feed that had appeared next to the spot Penny clicked. An enormous group of Tauros was indeed forming a herd, all three Paldean breeds included within its mass.

"By themselves, they're totally fine; a bit unruly, maybe, but nothing dangerous. But when a herd this large starts to form, I get a little worried. It's possible there's a really strong Pokémon that just settled in nearby; it could be making the Tauros feel forced to group up for their own protection. Or maybe they're just forming up by coincidence. But if something were to spook that herd and send them running, it could be real dangerous for any people and weaker Pokémon in the area."

"So, you want me to go there and 'nudge' the herd apart?" Juliana predicted, a small grin on her face.

"Yeah, that's the idea. Sorry to send you so far north after you just took care of that Tera Salamence way out east the other day," Penny offered with a grimace.

Juliana just gave her another dazzling smile and patted her shoulder.

"Nah, don't worry about it; I'm the one who took this job! Besides, I like traveling around Paldea. So send me wherever you need me, Boss!"

All she could do was laugh and grin up at her long-time friend.

"You sure know how to take things in stride. I stubbed my toe on the way in this morning and I just wanted to give up on everything, quit, and go back to bed."

Juliana giggled and placed the stuffed Eevee in Penny's hand.

"Why don't you try giving this a hug then? It always helps to cuddle a lovely little Pokémon, even if it's not a real one!"

Penny gazed upon the bright smile of her longtime companion.

"Thanks, Juliana. You're such a great friend; I don't know what I'd do without you."

"I'm always here for you! Alright, I'm gonna get ready to head out; I'll have to stop by Arven's and pick up Miraidon if I'm gonna break up a giant herd of Tauros."

"Sounds like a good idea to me. I'll send the map location to your phone, but if you need any more info or something strange happens, just hit me up – I'll be watching the situation from here like always."

"Thanks, Penny; will do!"

And with that, the young woman waved goodbye, turned on her heel, and strolled out of the office, easing the door shut behind her. In her wake, though, she left a much happier Penny. The annoyances of her morning had all but vanished and the smile on her face was genuine.

"I don't know how you do it Juliana, but I just can't feel down whenever you're around."

After giving the stuffed Eevee a quick hug, she clapped her hands and rubbed them together.

"Alright! Let's get back to it; I'm feeling extra motivated now!"


Nemona found herself walking down the long hallway that connected the Elite Four training grounds to the main hall. She had just finished up a practice match with Poppy. The Steel trainer was sixteen now and a bit more standoffish than she used to be, but Nemona couldn't help but feel a connection to her; she reminded her of herself in a way. She was hungry for strength and recognition. She was already one of the most talented trainers in the region, but she still strove for more and more.

Case in point – she had been the one to challenge Nemona today, not the other way around. And it had been a wonderful match.

"Yo, yo, Nemo!"

Nemona snapped out of her daze and felt an enormous grin spread across her face. Juliana was heading towards the exit, crossing the main hall with a spring in her step. The nickname she had come up with for Nemona long ago always lifted her spirits, even if they weren't low in the first place.

"Jules! I'm so glad I ran into you before you left; I've missed you!"

"I've missed you too! Being the Top Champion must keep you pretty busy, eh?"

Nemona gave a sheepish grin.

"Yeah, you remember how it was at first. When La Primera retired and left the League to me, I was floundering around a lot…but then Larry took time out of his busy day to build me a general schedule. So now I really make sure to stick to it as closely as I can!"

"I think you're doing great with it! I know you were nervous about taking over the Top Champion spot but I really don't think Geeta could've made a better choice."

Nemona felt her cheeks flush as she averted her eyes. Nothing could get her feeling bashful more than someone complimenting her skills so directly like that, especially her rival for life.

"Thanks, Jules. You sure you don't want to come back to my Elite Four? Larry would honestly love you forever if you replaced him again."

Juliana just gave her a guilty look.

"I don't think that path's for me, honestly. I'm sorry, Nemo."

She quickly waved her hands and shook her head, her untied hair waving back and forth.

"No, no, I wasn't trying to make you feel bad! I'm sorry! I was just teasing!"

In an instant, Juliana's face shifted and her guilt was replaced by glee as she grinned and winked at Nemona.

"I know, just thought I'd mess with you a little!"

Nemona felt her face morph through a few different emotions herself – surprise, exasperation, amusement, and just a tiny bit of disappointment. A small part of her really did want Juliana to come back; it would give them so much more time together and so many more opportunities to battle and learn from each other. But she was much more invested in her friend's happiness than her own selfish wishes, so she let that daydream go, allowing a grin to steal her face.

"Well played, mi amiga. You got me good! I really thought I'd upset you there."

"Nah, not at all. I knew you were just teasing."

"I should hope so! I'd never want to upset my greatest rival; I need you in top form after all!"

The girls laughed together for a few moments before Juliana glanced at her watch.

"All that said, I should probably get going. I'm headed up north to clear up that Tauros herd and I've gotta pick up Miraidon from Arven first."

"That's a good idea. Be careful out there, Jules. And hey, when you see that nerd Arven, tell him to come by and say hi soon! I never hear from him anymore."

Juliana gave her a confident thumbs up.

"Don't worry, I'll be sure to let him know how badly you miss him."

Nemona felt her cheeks flush and quickly shook her head.

"Well don't say it like that!"

Juliana's bright smile only seemed to grow more dazzling.

"I won't, I won't. But boy was it fun to see the look on your face just then!"

"You little!"

As Nemona chased Juliana through the main lobby without a care in the world for her image as the Top Champion of Paldea, she couldn't help but laugh and smile with abandon. There was some stress in her life, sure, but there were so many more good things than bad. Sometimes, it was nice to just step back and realize how great things actually were.

A surprise reunion with her favorite rival and lifelong friend did even more to help that perspective than anything else – nobody could hold a candle to Juliana's ability to lift up those around her without ever breaking a sweat.

Unless they were running across the Pokémon League's lobby…then they might both be sweating by the end.


"Well bud, what do you think?"

Arven watched as Mabosstiff sniffed at the new sandwich sitting in front of him. He offered it a tentative lick before recoiling and shaking his head, attempting to spit out the bitter taste a moment later.

Arven gave a dejected laugh before lifting the sandwich back into his hands.

"Welp. So much for that theory."

Just then, Miraidon appeared over his shoulder, its face inches from his own. At first, that habit had always surprised him. But across the last two years of working together, Arven had grown quite used to it.

"What, you want to try this failure too?"

Miraidon made a curious noise as it leaned in towards the sandwich.

"Alright, don't say I didn't warn you. No making fun of me if you hate it, got it?"

Arven raised the sandwich up and Miraidon took the whole thing into his mouth, chomping on it in excitement. It didn't take long, though, for its eyes to droop in sadness. It swallowed the sandwich all the same before shaking his head and mimicking Mabosstiff's actions, attempting to spit the taste off of his tongue.

"Told you. Thanks for holding up your end of the bargain, though."

Just then, there was knock at the door. Arven glanced over his shoulder and sighed, trudging across the room. He had converted his dad's old lab at the lighthouse into something of an experimental kitchen. Since he'd finished his time at Uva Academy, Arven had taken it upon himself to combine his interest in cooking and sandwich making with nutritional studies regarding Pokémon. When Penny had asked him what his exact field was, the best he could come up with was:

"I guess I'm a Pokémon dietician? But in an experimental way where I try to find natural remedies for sicknesses through the things I make, like what the Herba Mystica managed to do for Mabosstiff."

"So you're a Pokémon herbal medicine guru?"

"…it's a bit more scientific than just that, Penny…"

"And now I can't even do that part right," he sighed as he reached for the door.

Opening it, however, proved to be the highlight of his day as his dear friend Juliana stood on the other side, smiling and waving at him.

"What's up, Arven? How's it going?"

"Julie! Hey, good to see you! Come on in!"

She took him up on the offer, glancing around the lab and sniffing the air as he shut the door behind her.

"Ooh, what's the smell?"

"Failure," he spat, though there was no force behind his words.

"Uh oh. Today's blend wasn't quite right?"

"Nope. Mabosstiff and Miraidon both gagged when they tried it."

Juliana burst into laughter, causing Arven to sulk even more.

"No, no, I'm sorry! I'm not laughing at you, promise! Just the idea of Miraidon gobbling down something before he realized he wouldn't like it sounds exactly like him."

Arven grinned at her, his face brightening.

"Actually, I warned him in advance…and then he ate the whole thing anyway."

Juliana laughed even harder, attracting the attention of the two Pokemon on the other side of the room. Miraidon cried out in happiness and bounded across the open space, all but pouncing on Juliana and licking her.

"Hey there! Easy, easy, I'm happy to see you too!" she managed between fits of laughter.

Arven couldn't help feel a sense of happiness as he watched the two together. Mabosstiff, who had also wandered into the room, stopped next to him and watched the spectacle.

"You know," he began, placing a hand on Miraidon's head to calm it down, "I wasn't sure how well the two of us would get along at first when you said Miraidon should help me with my work. We have some rough history together…don't we?"

Miraidon nodded, though its eyes hinted at a feeling of guilt.

"But! We worked everything out! And that wouldn't have happened if it weren't for your great idea, Julie! Thanks again for being so stubborn about it."

Juliana, having fully recovered now, just gave him a thumbs up and a smile.

"No problem! I knew the two of you could get along; it just took a common interest to prove it to you."

"I gotta say, this giant glutton makes a good taste tester. Even when the concoction I come up with is foul like today, Miraidon still scarfs it down…and only makes fun of me a little bit."

"You and me both," Juliana murmured, winking at her old partner.

Arven put on a mock scowl.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing," she sang, folding her arms behind her head and deliberately turning away.

Arven laughed, letting his guise melt away as he felt his spirits soar. Any time he got to meet up with his old group of friends was a wonderful treat, but Juliana just had this way of making him laugh and smile like no one else could.

"Oh yeah," she began all at once, turning back to him with some intensity. "Nemo said she misses you so badly she might die from heartbreak if you don't go visit her soon."

Arven's face flushed a deep shade of scarlet and he sputtered, turning away from her as quickly as he could.

"W-what!? No way she said any of that! You're just messing with me right? B-besides, who'd want to go visit her anyway!? She's such a pain every time we're together!"

Juliana's Cheshire grin only widened as she leaned against Miraidon.

"I'll tell her you miss her too."

"You will not!"

Juliana broke into laughter yet again and Arven finally relaxed, managing to laugh as well. He was always a little unsure of how much she really knew about his complicated feelings towards Nemona.

'Honestly…I'm still a little unsure myself…'

"Anyway," he continued, quelling the heat in his face at last, "I'm guessing you're here because you need Miraidon for a League job?"

"Yessir! There's a huge herd of Tauros gathering up north and Penny's worried it might create some problems. So I'm gonna figure out the cause – if there is one – and take care of it. Then I'll just…'coax' them into spreading out a little bit."

"Ah, so being able to fly over them with Miraidon would make it a lot easier, huh?"

"You got it! I figure since they're all at least part Fighting type, Araquanid should have a good time no matter what breed they are. And between Ogerpon and her different masks, we should have it all covered! Not to mention the rest of the squad will be backing them up."

"Sounds like you've got a busy day coming up. I should probably let you get to it so you aren't getting home at midnight again. Hey, whatever happened to that big ol' Tera Garchomp they asked you to deal with last time you brought Miraidon out?"

Juliana grinned and raised a Pokéball from her belt.

"You mean this one?"

Arven sighed and gave her an amused grin.

"Of course you put it on the team."

Juliana laughed and spun the ball on her index finger.

"What can I say? I needed something to shore up the team's Fire and Flying weaknesses! And Armarouge is having a blast being one of the rental Pokémon at Uva, so I don't want to yank him out of the most exciting time of the school year when I could just fill the space with a new friend and make sure everyone has fun!"

"That sounds just like you, Julie."

"What do you mean?"

"You're always looking out for all of us – your Pokémon, your friends, your family, your neighbors. Heck, you picked a job where you're practically looking out for the whole region. You're pretty amazing, you know."

Juliana looked a little surprised for a moment but she quickly recovered, a serene smile appearing across her face.

"Thanks, Arven. I'm really glad you think so. I try to be there for everyone if I can be; it's always come so naturally to me. I just want the people important to me to be happy, you know?"

"I get that. And trust me, we're all way better off and a lot happier for having you in our lives."

"I'm really glad you think so. I've always got your back, no matter what."

"Thanks, Julie. I've got yours too, if you ever need it."

A moment later, Miraidon let out a noise that landed squarely between excitement and annoyance, causing both trainers nearby to chuckle.

"Think our buddy's getting impatient with us," Arven noted. "I'd better let you get on with it; that herd of Tauros won't clear itself, now will it?"

"Guess not! Thanks again, Arven. And don't give up on your new blend and recipe; I know you'll figure it out soon!"

"Thanks! I'll let you know how it turns out…you know, once it doesn't make both my taste testers want to throw up."

Juliana laughed loudly before beckoning Miraidon towards the door of the lab.

"I'll look forward to it! But until then, wish me luck!"

"Oh, trust me; if anyone needs luck, it's those Tauros!"


It was midday in Unova and Kieran had just finished up lunch at the Mistralton Pokémon Center while his team was being healed. The young man had been brainstorming how best to approach his upcoming battle with Skyla, the Flying type Gym Leader and ace pilot of the Unova League.

'Hmm…maybe I should go with Ice Beam or Thunderbolt on Porygon-Z. Or maybe Ice Spinner on Dragonite? Skyla's ace is her Swanna though, so Ice attacks will only take me so far. But does she have some type of Fighting coverage to protect her from Porygon-Z's Electric attacks? Like a Hawlucha or Flamigo? Both of those would be a problem…

'What about changing the weather? No…if I go with my Rain Dance strategy, she'll get a boost from that too. Hydrapple already won't have the best time with this fight; I shouldn't give myself more handicaps. Maybe we go for some Intimidate cycling with Incineroar? But how much of her team really relies on Special instead of Physical damage?

'Argh, it's not use; I'm just going in circles here. I need some advice. Is there anyone I can call right now? Sis isn't much for battling these days and everyone from the old group at Blueberry is pretty busy right now…hmm.'

Kieran clapped his hands as sudden inspiration struck, his face lighting up as he fished into his bag for his Rotom Phone.

"Juliana! Of course! I'll call her up and see if she can help! She's always been such a strong trainer; I'm sure she'd handle a Gym battle with Skyla just fine if she were here."

Glancing at the time, though, he realized it might be too late for that. It was less than an hour till midnight in Paldea and it felt a bit rude to call. But the last time they'd spoken on the phone, she assured him that she was always pretty late to bed and wouldn't mind a phone call whenever he was free.

"Okay, I'll call her once and if she doesn't answer, I'll assume she's asleep and leave her alone…but please, please answer! I'm just running around chasing my own tail right now…"

Kieran collected his things and left the Pokémon Center, not wanting to disturb anyone around him – mid-afternoon seemed to be quite a popular time for Centers in the Unova region. Instead, he wandered to the south end of town, enjoying the crisp winter air as he pulled up Juliana's contact information.

Within seconds, the device was ringing. He suppressed the guilt he felt for calling so late; she wouldn't be mad at him, but he didn't want to take advantage of her friendship either. Whether she answered or not, he should probably apologize…

But within four rings, the connection was established. She'd only connected with audio instead of the usual video chat, but that was fine.

"Hello? Kieran?"

"H-hey, yeah, it's me. Is it too late to be calling? I'm sorry, I know it's almost midnight for you…"

"Nah, not at all! I just finished getting ready for bed but I was planning to relax for a bit before I slept anyway; nothing to feel bad about! What's up?"

Kieran breathed a sigh of relief before collecting his thoughts. There was a reason he'd called, after all.

"Well, I'm trying to figure out a plan for my Gym battle with Skyla, the Flying type Leader. And I'm overthinking it a bit and backing myself into a corner mentally, so I wanted to ask for your advice since you're the best trainer I know."

"Aw, thanks! I'd be happy to tell you what I'd do in your situation. But remember, you're more than skilled enough to use anything I come up with for yourself too, so don't just take what I say as the only right answer. Trust your instincts as a trainer!"

"Thanks, Juliana. I'll make sure I think it all through. So here, let me give you a breakdown of my team and what I know about Skyla so far."

He listed out his group of six and the Pokemon he knew the Gym Leader used but added in his concerns about other unknowns such as the frightening Fighting/Flying type combination.

Juliana listened patiently before responding and he could just hear the grin on her face.

"Use the Rain Dance mode anyway."

"H-huh? But…what about her ace?"

"Swanna? It won't get much out of the rain, don't worry. Your team isn't that weak to Water outside of Incineroar, but even if it was, Swanna's Water attacks aren't that strong. Have Grimmsnarl throw up a Light Screen and Reflect and you'll chunk the damage you're taking anyway; that'll basically negate any advantage rain might give Skyla. Besides, having hyper-accurate Thunders from Porygon-Z makes the tradeoff more than worth it when you can just take her ace out in one shot."

"Thunder instead of Thunderbolt? Hmm, yeah I guess that would be better if I'm going all in on the Rain Dance idea."

"And if you're worried about Hawlucha or Flamigo threatening Porygon-Z, you've got an easy answer there too – Dragonite can cover it and take the Fighting attacks like a champ before answering back with Dual Wingbeat, maybe even perfectly accurate Hurricanes if your Dragonite leans more into its Special attacks rather than Physical. And since you'd be bringing it anyway to set the rain, Politoed with Ice Beam can take care of anything Dragonite and Porygon-Z don't already beat. I think that's what I'd do."

Kieran had just been listening with a smile on his face while his friend rattled off one brilliant strategy after another.

"Wowzers, it's been a while since we've battled but I can tell you're just as smart and talented as you ever were, probably even more now."

"Ah, you're just flattering me! I know you'd have figured something like that out too if you'd given yourself some time to just sit calmly with everything. But I also know how easy it is to start thinking yourself in circles; I did it all the time in the past."

"How'd you stop doing that?"

"Some of it was just trial by fire honestly, but a lot more was learning to trust my Pokémon and figuring out their individual strengths and weaknesses. Take my Araquanid for example. If I was staring down a Talonflame, I wouldn't think twice about leaving him in to fight it. A lot of people would probably want to switch out right away since Gale Wings would make sure Talonflame landed a really strong Flying attack before he could even react, but I've watched my Araquanid take heavier Physical Flying hits than a Talonflame is capable of dishing out. And after he withstood that attack, Talonflame would be a sitting duck to a Water Bubble boosted Liquidation. Down and out, just like that. And then he might even be able to heal up with Leech Life on whatever came out after that.

"But if I didn't know Araquanid could take that attack and stay standing afterwards, I'd probably build my strategy around switching into Garchomp to fire off a Rock Slide or something. But that'd give Talonflame a chance to inflict Burn on him and if that happened, the whole battle could spiral out of control. What if I needed Garchomp to take care of another Fire type in the back? Or a Flying/Electric type that Ogerpon, Meowscarada, Araquanid, and Valiant really don't want to be fighting?"

Kieran blinked in surprise a few times before grinning to himself.

"You really do think five steps ahead, don't you? That's my biggest weakness, not being able to see far enough into the future to plan for unexpected situations. It's why I've never beaten you in a real battle when you've been trying your hardest. But it sure is inspiring and cool to hear you think out loud about Pokémon battles, Juliana! And it makes me want to keep getting better and better so I can measure up to you as a real rival someday!"

Juliana laughed lightly from the other end of the line.

"You already are a real rival to me, Kieran. And don't worry, I have strengths and weaknesses just like you do. Sometimes I tunnel vision on one extremely niche possibility during a battle and mess up the obvious answer that's staring me right in the face; Nemona's made sure I regret that more than once! But I'm sure as you keep pushing your way through the Unova League, you'll just get stronger and stronger. I'm excited for our next battle!"

"Me too! Thanks, Juliana; you always know how to make me feel better."

"Any time, Kieran."

"Speaking of Nemona, how is everyone in Paldea? And how are you? Last time we talked like this, I think you said you were starting a new job with the Paldea League?"

"Oh that's right! Man, I guess it's really been a while, huh? But yeah, I started working as a 'Paldean Protection Officer.'"

"Ooh, what's that?"

Juliana laughed, this time with more abandon.

"It's a fancy way of saying if something goes wrong in the region that's more than we can expect normal trainers to handle, I'll get sent out to take care of it. There are others aside from just me, of course, but since the Area Zero incident seven years ago, the League has been pretty proactive about keeping the region safer. And since I helped stop that whole mess, Nemona thought I'd be a good fit for the position."

"Right, she's the new Top Champion, isn't she?"

"She sure is! I actually ran into her earlier today; she's doing a great job! Geeta retired about six months ago now so she could focus her attention on other things and handpicked Nemona to be her successor."

"She didn't want you to do it? I mean, no offense to Nemona at all but you're incredible!"

"Thanks! She did actually ask me if I was interested when she was putting a short list together, but to tell you the truth, being Top Champion just doesn't sound all that appealing to me. Once she gave me the rundown of the job, I knew I didn't want it. Besides, Nemona may be a little too wild about battling sometimes, but she's very responsible! Plus, she gets to fight all the strongest trainers in Paldea and go all out every time they reach her; I'm really happy for her!"

"I only met her that one time in Kitakami, but it sounds like she'd really enjoy that job, yeah."

"She does! And everyone else is good too. Penny also works for the League as our head of security and organizer of…basically everything else," she explained with a chuckle. "And Arven has really committed to Pokémon herbal medicine and nutrition!"

"Wowzers, that's so great to hear!"

"It's even better to see!"

Kieran couldn't help the bright smile that stole his face. It had been too long since he'd caught up with Juliana and his heart already felt magnitudes lighter than it had a short while ago.

"And Ogerpon?" he continued. "How's she doing these days?"

"Oh, she's great! The adorable little thing's relaxing in the bath right now actually; she worked really hard for me today so I brought her up to my apartment to get properly cleaned up. She had a blast, though."

"That's great. I'm really glad she chose you back then, Juliana. You've been such a wonderful trainer to her. Tell her hi for me, please."

"I will! And how about on your end? How's little Terapagos doing?"

"He's doing pretty well! Ms. Briar back at Blueberry asked if she could borrow him for a research project she's working on. After I made her promise not to overwhelm the poor little guy, he agreed to help. So he'll be at the Academy for a little while until that's all taken care of."

"Sounds like he's in good hands, though!"

"Yeah, I think so too."

"And you're doing okay yourself? Unova is treating you well, right?"

"It really is! I've managed to get five Gym Badges now and it's starting to actually feel real, you know? Like I might actually be able to challenge Iris and the Unova League sometime sooner than later."

"I know you will, Kieran. And you'll win too! I can't wait to be friends and rivals with a brand new Champion of the Unova League!"

Kieran felt his face flush and was suddenly glad she couldn't see him.

"T-thanks, Juliana. The fact that you're one of the youngest Paldean Champions ever has always been a point of inspiration to me, you know."

"Aw, thank you! You're really trying to butter me up huh?"

Kieran laughed again.

"I mean, come on, how can I not? You're my greatest rival! But for real, it sounds like things are going well out there in Paldea. I'm really glad you've stayed close with all your friends, too. I still struggle with that a little from time to time."

"It's a tough balance to strike sometimes, isn't it? Especially when you have your own things going on and they end up taking you far away. But I'm really thankful for the people in my life, and that includes you of course."

"T-thanks. I'll try to be better about keeping in touch more often."

"Don't beat yourself up; I could've called too. We'll both do better!"

"Yeah. I like the sound of that."

"It is getting a little late so I should probably start winding down pretty soon, but can I ask you a question before I go?"

"Of course, ask me anything at all."

There was a pause on the other end of the line before Juliana spoke again, her voice softer than it had been.

"Is Carmine okay? I haven't heard from her in a while and I'm just a little worried."

Kieran frowned. In truth, he wasn't really sure himself. But Juliana had taken time out of her night to help him with battle strategy, so he at least owed it to her to be honest.

"Well…I don't really know. I know she's back home in Kitakami with Grandma and Grandpa right now, but…I get the feeling she's not being entirely honest with me when I talk to her."

"How do you mean?"

"It's like…she always says she's fine – 'Kiki, you worry too much. I'm just adjusting to life without school; it's different but I'll be on top of the world in a few weeks!' Things like that. But…I never really believe her when she talks that way."

"You think she's struggling with something?"

"Maybe. She's never really been the type to open up to me about her feelings; you know how she is. But this feels different. It feels less like she's being stubborn with me and more like she's…not sure if she should be honest with me, I guess."

"I hope she's okay…"

"You haven't heard from her lately?"

"No, not in a while. You know how close we used to be, but for the last year or so, it's felt like she was becoming a bit more distant. I didn't want to pressure her so I just let her do whatever she needed to but…I dunno, maybe I should have stuck to her harder."

"Hey, it's not your fault, Juliana," Kieran tried to reassure her. "Whatever's going on with Sis, I'm sure she'll bounce back."

"I'm sure she will too; Carmine's pretty tough after all. But maybe I should give her a call sometime."

"I think she'd like that."

"You do? I wouldn't be pressuring her too much?"

"Nah, I seriously doubt it. I'm sure she'd she'd be happy, honestly."

"Thanks, Kieran! Maybe I'll call her up tomorrow then, check in on her and see how she's doing!"

"Yeah, that sounds like a great idea! Thanks for looking after her, Juliana. You're a real good friend."

"I don't know if I'm all that, but I sure do try!"

"Alright, I'll let you go now so you can get to bed, but it was great catching up with you! And thanks again for the advice; I'll let you know how my battle with Skyla turns out."

"Please do! You've got this!"

"Thanks, Juliana. Goodnight!"

"Bye, Kieran!"

And with that, the call ended. Kieran smiled to himself as he returned his Rotom Phone to his bag.

'Sis isn't the only one who should be better about keeping up with Juliana. I gotta make sure I don't get so caught up in my own little world that I neglect my friends again like I did back at Blueberry.'

Despite his warning, though, Kieran still felt much lighter and happier. His short conversation with Juliana had served to boost his mood considerably. It seemed like she always had that effect on him, both as a friend and a rival.

"She really is something. And I'm gonna live up to her expectations! Let's go get ready to win a Gym battle!"


"Come on, cutie! Let's get some sleep."

"Pon! Ponio!"

Juliana smiled as she beckoned Ogerpon over to bed with her. As she'd told Kieran earlier, the sweet little Ogre had come up to her apartment following their work in northern Paldea.

Things had gone according to plan that afternoon. Between Ogerpon, Garchomp, and Araquanid, the herd of Tauros had been dispersed with relative ease. Juliana hadn't found any strong Pokémon nearby forcing them to group up, so she figured it was just an accident of circumstance. All her Pokemon had done great work and were already sleeping peacefully out in the Pastures after she had rewarded them with plenty of food.

Ogerpon, however, had wanted to tag along with her while she reported the situation back to Penny, so once they had finished up, Juliana just took the little sweetheart back to her place instead. There had been a disproportionate amount of Water-breed Tauros in that herd and Ogerpon had really gone to town chasing them off, thanks in part to her Wellspring Mask.

Juliana had taken the Ogre into the bath with her where she had spoiled the sweet Pokémon as much as she could, lathering her up with tons of soap, having an impromptu splash war with her, and just generally making sure she was relaxed and happy.

Ogerpon stayed in the bath for a little while after Juliana had gotten out, which had coincided quite nicely with Kieran's phone call. And after the little Pokémon was finished relaxing, Juliana wrapped her up in a fluffy, white towel. Seeing it all but replace the green overcoat she normally wore brought an enormous smile to Juliana's face; she looked impossibly adorable.

But now that everything was finished up for the night, exhaustion was catching up with her. She had nothing to do tomorrow and was fully intending to just sleep until whatever time she woke up. It was just after midnight, not unreasonably late – certainly not the latest she'd ever stayed up – but still a relatively responsible bedtime. It was probably safe not to bother with an alarm tonight.

Juliana fell into the large bed that rested along the wall and patted the mattress next to her. Ogerpon sang its excitement before hurrying across the room, jumping into the air, and plopping down next to her trainer.

"Ready for a good night's sleep after getting nice and clean?"

"Ponpon!" The stary-eyed smile she offered said it all.

"Thanks for working so hard today, Ogerpon. You really are such a wonderful companion."

"Pon!"

"I was talking to Kieran earlier while you were still in the bath; he says hi! But he also reminded me that I really am lucky you chose me back then in Kitakami. I'm glad you wanted to stay with me as much as I wanted to stay with you."

Ogerpon sang its joy once more before scooting in closer to Juliana, nestling up against her and making the girl giggle.

"You're such a sweetheart. Alright, let's get some sleep, huh?"

"Ponpon." She was already starting to doze off.

Juliana quickly pulled the blankets up over them and nestled down into her pillow. Ogerpon was asleep in seconds but her own mind was still settling. She reflected on the day, hoping everything had turned out as well as it could have in the end.

'I think it was a good day – we handled that herd pretty well, after all. The wild Pokémon didn't get hurt, nobody's in danger, and the team did great. And we even got home before midnight; that's a lot better than last time. Still…why did those Tauros start grouping up like that? Hmm.

'Oh well, Penny will keep an eye on things and I'll do whatever I can to help. I'm glad Penny was looking better tonight, too. She seemed pretty down at the beginning of the day so I'm glad I could cheer her up a little.

'Nemo seems like she's doing great too. I know she was worried about doing a good job but she really shouldn't be. She's such a natural leader it's almost scary; she just doubts herself a lot. So does Arven. I think I managed to cheer him up earlier too. Poor guy; I know he gets real down on himself when his recipes and creations don't work out at first. He'll get there, though.'

Juliana frowned and thought a little harder about the day she'd just finished.

'I did make sure everyone had a good day today…didn't I? I'm not just making things up, right? Penny really did have a better afternoon because of me? Arven really did cheer up when I came by? Even Kieran and Nemo seemed like they were doing a little better after we talked even though they weren't in the same situation.

'Yeah…yeah, I did good today. Everyone had a good day. Everyone's happy. Everyone's happy…'

Juliana felt her eyes start to sting but she quickly blinked the feeling away. With Ogerpon sleeping so soundly nearby, the last thing she wanted to do was disturb her. But the ever-present feeling of emptiness, the one that really took hold of her when all was quite, was particularly unrelenting tonight. There was almost an anger to the intensity of the hollowness this time.

'Everyone's…happy. I…I wonder what that's like. I keep trying to make everyone else happy but…it never works for me. Just them. I'm glad it works for them…I'm so glad I can help my friends like that…but I just feel so…so…'

She didn't want to admit it to herself. She didn't even want to think about what it was. But she knew. It had been with her for a while now, this lurking, sinking sensation. What was that void that opened up beneath her heart when the chaos and excitement of a day reached its conclusion? What made up this shadow that fell over her smile when she was alone in bed at night? What name did she give to the impossible weight that anchored her to her bed each and every morning and made just standing up require the most herculean effort imaginable?

'I'm just…sad. Just…really sad. I hate this.'

She gazed at the sleeping Pokémon beside her, weighing something in her mind. She felt terribly guilty for it but…

'Would…Ogerpon mind…if I hugged her till I slept…?'

Despite her best efforts to resist, she scooted a bit closer to the sleeping Ogre, wrapping the Pokémon up in her arms. Ogerpon shifted for a moment but her eyes never opened, her gentle breathing continuing without change. Juliana felt her mouth twitch into a tiny smile. It wasn't nearly as broad or expressive as the ones she'd used with her friends earlier – barely even the whisper of one, in fact – but it was by far the most genuine she'd worn all day.

Ogerpon shifted in her sleep and rolled onto her side, facing into Juliana now as her arm fell over her trainer's side. As if on instinct, Ogerpon seemed to pull her in closer. The little Ogre never awakened, but Juliana appreciated the feeling immensely.

'Thank you, Ogerpon. I don't usually have anyone next to me at nights…this is nice. I just…I just have to get over this. It's all okay. This is more than enough for now. I can keep going. I can keep making sure my friends are happy. I can keep being there for them. As long as they're happy, I'm sure I'll be okay. And if I can keep everyone else happy, maybe I'll figure out how to be happy again too…'

Juliana sighed and snuggled closer to Ogerpon, holding her a bit tighter than she meant to.

'What did I say to Penny earlier? 'It always helps to cuddle a lovely little Pokémon, even if it's not a real one!' I think I was wrong; a real one is way better than a little stuffed toy.'

But for as grateful as Juliana was that Ogerpon was next to her, she was even more grateful for the fact that she was sleeping. She didn't want her sweet partner to see her like this, so dreary and miserable. She wouldn't let that happen.

And it wasn't just Ogerpon.

Nemona had never seen her like this either…and she never would. Neither would Arven. Nor Penny. Kieran. Carmine. Her mom. No one. She wouldn't let herself be this way in front of them.

'They're counting on me to make them happy…they're counting on me to be there for them just like I always have been. And I will be, no matter what. I just have to get through this. It'll be okay. As long as they're happy, I'm fine. Everything's fine.'

Juliana clung tightly to Ogerpon for a long time after that. The specter wasn't as powerful as it had been earlier. Maybe it was because of her cuddling companion or perhaps she was just pleased that she'd lifted her friends' spirits that day. But no matter the reason, it was rather nice to feel something even slightly positive as she drifted off to sleep.

'See? I'm getting there. Just gotta keep going. It'll all be just fine.'

10/17/2024


End Note: Hey everyone, thanks for reading the latest chapter! I wanted to say a few things about this chapter at the end this time since I'd spoil things otherwise.

So this chapter was a little experimental for me. Usually I have one to two major POVs I use per story I write; I tend to find it keeps me more grounded in the thoughts and behaviors of the characters and helps me get to know them better. Occasionally, I'll kick it out to another character for a scene or two, but then we quickly come back home. Case in point, all of Chapter 1 is told from Carmine's perspective in this story.

But I wanted to introduce and characterize Juliana through the eyes of her friends first this time as a way of explaining and showing exactly what "smiling depression" can look like. It's a term I was unfamiliar with until somewhat recently but the implications of writing a character struggling with something like that are very interesting to me as a writer. As I always say with projects I enjoy writing, I don't enjoy making my characters suffer or making them sad, but as a creator it does serve a purpose and can be very fascinating to delve into.

Obviously, the experiment this time was using five different POVs and only introducing Juliana herself at the very end - I hope it worked out as well as I wanted it to. I thought it was an interesting way to "show" you the way her depression looks instead of just "telling" you. In real life, it can be incredibly hard to spot signs of depression in people who mask it the way Juliana is doing. Even the people closest to you can't see it if the person in question is a skilled enough actor. That made the twist at the end more powerful for me as I wrote it and I hope it landed well for you as a reader too.

Anyway, from here on out, expect much more concise use of POV characters - the rest of the story will (I think completely) be told from Carmine's and Juliana's perspectives. Also, as a final note, some of the character representation this chapter was a bit disproportional. There was a lot more Kieran than Nemona, for example. This is mostly because some characters will pop back up again and continue to have time in the spotlight and others kinda won't - in this example, Nemona will be reappearing but Kieran is mostly done aside from a few side moments. So there will be more to come with characters that might've felt "slighted" this time around, promise.

I hope this chapter was an interesting one to read and experience! Thank you for reading and coming back for more and I hope I'll see you back again soon for Chapter 3! More to come soon! Until then, take care everyone!