A/N: Hey, everyone! I know it's been seven months since I first posted the first chapter of this two-shot. I was hoping to wrap this quick project up sooner than this, but unfortunately, real life, uh, finds a way.
Anyway, references aside, I was able to find some time to finish this up, since I'm going through a bit of a slump in the form of writer's block. Hopefully, by writing the second half of this story and closing the curtains on this premise, I'll take the first steps in fully jogging my "Pokémon" writing chops and get back to writing the final chapters of "The Way We Will Be", among others. I know people have wanted to see me get back to that, and believe me, I'm trying, but it's a struggle now that I have a job. These developments will be baby-steps, but they're steps nonetheless. Hey, it's better than nothing, am I right?
On another note, man, I can't help but miss Ash and Pikachu. I just can't bring myself to get up to speed with the anime nowadays. I'm sure the adventures of Liko, Roy, and company are interesting and worthwhile, but I've spent 26 years of my life with Ash and Pikachu to allow myself to become invested in such a break after so long. And the scarce knowledge that I currently have on "Pokémon Horizons" just isn't telling me if it's set in its own timeline or in the same timeline as Ash's, which could affect how I write "Pokémon" fics going forward. :/
Alright, enough of this rambling! On with the second half of this two-shot. ENJOY!
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"Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!"
Lei enthusiastically crawled along Route 1, his eyes shining just as brightly as his surrogate brother's. Despite being a baby, he moved at a freakishly energetic pace, guided by his excitement over the colorful billboard that he saw and the overall experience of being outside. For much of his budding life, he never liked being indoors and would rejoice whenever his skin could feel more than a few rays of warm sunlight. Fortunately for him, his home region of Alola absolutely had no shortage of warmth and sunshine, not to mention Pokémon.
Speaking of which, the only things that would interrupt Lei's progress were Pokémon sightings. Every time he saw a Pokémon, no matter what species it was, he would take the time to sit in fascination and watch them go about their daily lives. Being surrounded and partially raised by Ash's Pokémon for all of his life sparked an early, deep fondness of Pokémon within the baby boy.
As such, Lei remained totally oblivious during his rapt observations as three pairs of eyes continued to watch him from the safety and solitude of the surrounding foliage.
"LEEEEEIIIII! LEEEEEIIIII!"
"LEI, IF YOU CAN HEAR ME, SOUND OFF!"
"Really?! You think a baby is going to understand what 'sound off' means, let alone understand those directions?!"
Serena stopped cold in her tracks and blushed in deep embarrassment. A couple of feet ahead of her, Lillie was already twitching and fidgeting with her clothes in abject terror. The two young women's Pokémon were still searching the immediate area: Delphox was peering into the surrounding tree-line with her sharp, keen eyes; Magearna helped Pancham somersault onto a low-hanging tree branch so he could get a better vantage point of the area; Sylveon used her feelers to part a bush and see if Lei was hiding inside; and Snowy was attentively sniffing the ground for any trace of the baby's natural scent.
But even as the Pokémon were doing the hard work, neither Serena nor Lillie had their minds set on the task at hand. Their thoughts were swimming in the horror of the situation.
Almost immediately, Lillie dove her hand into her skirt pocket. "That's it! I'm calling Ash-"
"No, no, no, don't!" Serena squeaked. She lunged at the blonde and grabbed her hand and wrist, stopping it from accessing the pocket. "I told you, Lillie! If Ash finds out that we lost Lei, then it'll break his heart!"
"We lost Lei?!" Suspicion quickly flooded Lillie's face. "You're the one who lost him! I was the one who just stopped by at the right time and then got roped into your mess! And you don't think Ash should have a right to know that his baby brother is missing?!"
Serena didn't say anything. Instead, her face began to sink with ambivalence. At that moment, Lillie came to a realization, and she wrinkled her brow at her honey-blonde friend. Her suspicions were confirmed when Serena's facial muscles twitched, almost imperceptibly, at Lillie's glare.
"Or maybe you just don't want Ash to know that you failed him in such a basic responsibility."
Something figuratively snapped within Serena, and she literally snapped, "Basic responsibility? Basic responsibility?! BASIC RESPONSIBILITY?!"
Her outburst caught the attention of her Pokémon and Lillie's, and they all paused their search to awkwardly watch their Trainers in the middle of this tense confrontation.
"For the love of Arceus, I can't figure out WHY Lei hates me so much! And even worse, I don't HAVE the time to figure it out because he's busy making my life completely MISERABLE! Always crying, crying, crying, all day and all night, always interrupting and always complicated and always getting in the way! Oh, you may think YOU have Lei all figured out, Little Miss Perfect, but you DON'T! You don't have to spend every waking minute of his crying and his wailing and his screaming and his throwing-up and his... UUUUURRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!"
In the midst of her fury, Serena's hands blindly flew to her hair, and she started frantically, maniacally rubbing her scalp, causing her smooth honey-blonde hair to become unkempt and her gray felt-hat to fly off. For a moment, Lillie watched in shock as her friend took out her rage onto herself, before she sighed and cleared her throat.
"Believe it or not, Serena," the blonde said, "I do have an idea on what you're feeling."
"NO, YOU DON'T!" Serena shrieked.
A crease appeared on Lillie's brow. "Yes, I do, Serena. Who do you think was the one who babysat Lei for the Professors before you and Ash arrived?"
This question caused Serena to freeze. "Wait..." It took a couple of seconds for the realization to sink in. "WAIT!"
She lunged at Lillie and grabbed her shoulders, causing the other girl to squeak in surprise. Then, Lillie's eyes grew wide as she stared deep into the stunningly terrifying visage that somehow belonged to Serena Gabena. Her once-fair skin was pale; and her sapphire-blue eyes were the widest they could be, totally bloodshot; and punctuated with visible bags underneath. In all the years she had known Ash's girlfriend, she had never seen her look that way before.
"You're the Lei whisperer..." Serena concluded in a trembling voice.
"Th-The L-L-Lei whisperer?!" stammered Lillie. Then, she took another, more critical look at Serena's face. "Serena, how much sleep have you had lately?"
"Sleep?" One of the Vaniville Town native's eyelids twitched. "What is sleep?"
"L-Look." Lillie hesitantly lifted Serena's hands away from her shoulders. "You need to lie down and rest, Serena. Get some sleep, and I'll look for Lei-"
"NO!" With the insomnia-induced madness returning, Serena took Lillie's shoulders again and frantically shook her. "You're just gonna call Ash and tell him everything!"
Lillie gasped. "No, Serena! I-"
But Serena didn't listen. "Then you're gonna tell him how much of a failure I am in raising Lei and getting him to like me!"
"Serena, it's not like-"
"And then you're gonna spend all that precious time together in intimacy, just you two!"
"Serena, slow down-"
"And then Ash is gonna fall in love with you and break up with me!"
"No, Serena! I won't-"
"And then he'll propose to you and marry you instead!"
"Serena, I..." Lillie's voice wavered and trailed off, while her eyes became slightly glazed. "Huh..."
"And then he'll have Yancy, Red, and Selene with you and-!"
This random blurt shook Lillie out of her partial stupor. "Wait, what?"
"Then the two of you are gonna spend the rest of your lives together, all happy and cozy and snuggly in your big, warm bed, and then-"
Something within Lillie snapped. "SERENA! FOR THE LOVE OF ARCEUS, WILL YOU PLEASE JUST SNAP OUT OF IT?!"
This finally silenced the honey-blonde. For a moment, she could do nothing but deliver a vacant stare at her friend, unable to process anything that was happening. Lillie and the Pokémon watched with rapt apprehension, unsure whether they were walking on eggshells or not. Finally, after a period of tense and awkward silence, Serena's sapphire-blue eyes started to water.
"Ohhh, Lillie..." she wept. "I'm horrible, am I...?"
Before Lillie could answer, Serena had already buried her face into her shoulder and started crying. The blonde blinked in surprise, before her posture relaxed and she started gently patting and stroking Serena's back in consolation.
"You're not horrible, Serena," Lillie finally said. "You're great. More than great, actually. You're the greatest, kindest, most beautiful girl that I know."
"How can you say that when Ash and Lei like you better than-?"
Lillie immediately parted from Serena, and this time, it was her turn to latch her hands onto her friend's shoulders. Her green eyes bore into the sapphire orbs, radiating an intense determination that the honey-blonde had never seen from her before.
"Okay, Serena. Where are you getting that from?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Serena responded glumly. "Lei likes you a hundred times better than I do. Whenever he's in my arms, he's crying like Arceus's wrath is upon us. But when I give him to you, he's calm and giggly in an instant." Her gaze fell in despondence. "I can never get him to be that way on my own. He only responds to you...and Ash..."
Lillie's eyes lit up in realization. "And you're thinking about the time that tourist mistook me and Ash for his parents."
Serena gave her a tiny nod. "And then...I see how close you and Ash are when the two of you are watching over him..."
The blonde sighed, and her grip slackened. "Serena, I'm no longer in love with Ash."
"Are you, though? Are you?" Serena tore away from Lillie's grasp and turned her back on her friend. "I know how magnetic and infectious Ash is as a person...and as a guy. You can't just stop being in love with someone like him-"
"Well, I pulled it off, Serena. I got over Ash after confessing to him on Big Wave Beach. Now, the only love that I feel for him is the kind of love you feel towards a close friend. Nothing more, nothing less. You gotta believe me on that."
"Really?" Serena looked over her shoulder; tears were dripping from the corners of her eyes. "You stopped crushing over Ash after confessing to him. Just like that."
Lillie sighed heavily, then she replied, "Look, I'm not lying to you, Serena, when I say that getting over him wasn't easy. It certainly wasn't. In fact, the prospect of living life without him as a boyfriend and as a potential husband killed me inside for many, many months after the fact. But I found a way."
"Oh, yeah? How? How do you move on from an amazing guy like Ash, Lillie?"
For a moment, Lillie gulped, and her cheeks turned florid, sparking deep concerns in Serena's heart. But Lillie seemed to have noticed her friend's impulsive reaction to her physiological changes, for she blurted out her answer.
"B-Be-Because I found someone else!"
...
...
...
"What?" Serena asked, blankly and dumbly.
"I found someone else, Serena," Lillie replied, as her entire face turned red now. "I'm...I'm dating a guy."
...
...
...
...
...
"Since...Since WHEN?!"
"Since last Christmas." Lillie giggled and shyly ground her heel into the dirt. "We were keeping it under wraps for the time being because he's still busy with his new job. So, you're the first person to know."
Joy and relief had flooded Serena's face with the force of a tidal wave, and she wrapped Lillie in a tight hug of jubilation. In fact, she was so delighted that she spun herself and her friend around on the ball of her heel.
"Oh, my Arceus!" the honey-blonde squealed. "Congratulations, Lillie! I'm so happy for you!"
Lillie giggled with a mixture of lingering shyness and growing happiness. "Th-Thanks, Serena..."
Serena let go of her friend and stared into her eyes. "You gotta tell me all about him! What's he like?! What's his job?! Oh, what's his name?! Wait, do I know him already?!"
The blonde opened her mouth, willing to share the information, when she instantly remembered. "Oh, my Arceus! LEI!"
Upon hearing her future brother-in-law's name, Serena remembered as well. "Oh, crud!"
"I'll tell you everything later, Serena. For now, we have to put all our focus back on finding Lei and bringing him back home before Ash finds out!"
"Yeah!" With that, the Performer picked her felt-hat up from the ground, put it back on, and then turned towards her Pokémon. "Delphox, Sylveon, Pancham, did you three find any trace of him?"
The three Pokémon sadly shook their heads, dismaying Serena. As for Lillie, she glanced at Snowy and Magearna.
"What about you, Snowy, Magearna?" the blonde asked. The Alolan Ninetales shook her head as well, while Magearna let out a sad electronic hum, prompting Lillie to exhale in concern. "Okay, so we know he was last here, because that's where the trace of his little, ahem, 'accident' ends."
"And he hasn't answered our calls," added Serena, "so he's definitely moved on."
"So..." Lillie looked around. "Where could he have gone to next? We gotta think like Lei. Where would he wanna go?"
The honey-blonde sighed in despair. "Knowing him, he'd want to be anywhere and everywhere. He's Ash Junior in the making, after all."
Lillie giggled nostalgically. "Yeah, tell me about it. Whenever I'd watch over him, his favorite thing to do is to explore the backyard and climb the fence. He really wants to see all of Alola on his own, like a Pokémon Trainer."
"So that doesn't narrow down the list of places where he likes to go." Then, a realization slowly dawned on Serena. "Unless..."
Lillie looked at her in hope. "What? What'd you think of, Serena?"
"Lillie, has Lei been to any of the Pokémon battlefields or stadiums?"
"Yeah, he's been to a bunch..." Lillie's voice trailed off as she came to the same realization. "Oh, my Arceus!"
"Lei's headed downtown!" both girls cried at the same time.
Unbeknownst to the two young women, Lei had already reached his destination: the bustling streets of Hau'oli City. He crawled along the city's edge, watching with rapt fascination as civilians and Pokémon alike went about in their daily routines, unaware of the eternally curious infant in close proximity.
"Meamea!" Lei babbled while observing the passing Pokémon. "Rara! Vava!"
"Alright, everyone! Here's a recap of yesterday's amazing Battle Royal!"
The mighty voice echoed across the air, commanding Lei's attention. His eyes immediately flew to the massive TV screen on the side of one of the buildings. At the moment, it was displaying a colorful replay of a Pokémon battle, the only thing in the world that Lei could recognize in his extremely young, fledgling life. As such, the baby stood still, his gaze transfixed upon the screen and his pupils following every televised attack launched like it was an individual firework.
"Ahhhhh..." he gurgled in amazement. "Wooooo... Gaaaaahhhhh..."
"And once again, Ash Ketchum proves why he is the undisputed Champion of Alola, not to mention the great Monarch!"
Lei's eyes grew as wide as anatomically possible, and he let out a gasp of pure delight. Amidst the sparkling colors and the flashing attacks, he recognized a certain hue of yellow and a particular hat of red, black, and white.
"A-da! Ka-cha!"
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" the televised replay of Ash commanded with a swipe of his arm.
Lei immediately mimicked the swipe, poorly but with unrivaled gusto. "Ah!"
"Piiiiikaaaaa-CHUUUUUUUUUU!"
Lei watched, awestruck while Pikachu unleashed all of the electricity that he had onto his opponent, causing the hapless Pokémon to fall over in one swoop. Lei laughed and giggled before aimlessly pumping his fists into the air. When the replays of Ash and Pikachu promptly disappeared from the screen, Lei looked around, then he continued along his journey with a renewed pace. He seemed to be guided by some impulse unknown to anybody but his immature, underdeveloped mind. His presence went unnoticed by anyone but the three conspicuous pairs of eyes that stuck close to the nearby greenery.
"Lana! Sophocles!"
Upon arriving at Lana's family's home, Serena and Lillie ran up to the Water-type and Electric-type specialists, just in time to see what they were carrying together: a tank full of various Water-type Pokémon species. Sophocles's knees were buckling under the great weight of the rectangular container, but Lana seemed to have an easier time carrying her side despite her small, petite stature.
"Oh!" Lana exclaimed in surprise. "Lil, Serena! What brings you here?"
"Have you seen-?" Lillie began.
But Serena acted quicker; she cut her off by elbowing her in the back. Though she tried to use as little force as possible, it still wound up knocking the blonde girl down to the ground on her face. Lana and Sophocles gawked at the sudden, random display. Serena's face instantly turned pink in embarrassment, and she rubbed the back of her head.
"Eh heh heh heh..." Then, upon remembering her current objective, she shook her head and cleared her throat. "U-Um, p-pardon me, b-but have you two noticed anything, er...unusual?"
"U-Un-Unusual?" a red-faced Sophocles stammered. He then grunted from the unbearable strain that the water tank's weight was applying to his arms.
"Y-Yeah! Like, anything that you noticed happening today?"
Lana gave the honey-blonde a casual shrug. "Well, it depends on what you mean by 'noticing anything unusual'. Like, is this something we were supposed to see? Hear? Smell?"
Serena blinked nervously. "W-Well...see, I-I guess..."
"Then no, I can't say that I have. But then again, Soph and I have been spending all day helping my dad with his fish, so I doubt there's any way we would've noticed anything even if it did happen under our noses." Then, Lana gave a mild grunt. "Whoa, whoa, whoa there, Soph! Don't you dare drop that! If this breaks, then there goes my family's income for the month!"
"But babe!" Sophocles whined, his voice cracking in the process while his legs trembled even more. "This thing's so HEAVY! I- Ugh! I...don't think...I can-"
Serena could see what was about to happen next. She promptly sprung forward and grabbed one of the tank's sides before Sophocles could topple over. As soon as she did that, she grunted and felt as if an invisible force had snatched all of the oxygen away from her lungs.
"Oh, my Arceus," she thought in despair. "This. Is. HEAVY!"
Fortunately, her efforts were met with assistance. Lillie shot up to her feet and grabbed the same side as Serena, allowing the tank's weight to be divided evenly among the quartet and giving Sophocles a moment to regain his precious balance.
"Oh, Arceus!" Lana wheezed with immense relief. "Thank you so much, girls!"
"Whew!" Lillie cried. "No problem, Lana!"
After sighing, the young blue-haired woman shot Sophocles a glare of disappointment. "And who would've guessed that three little girls would be more capable of carrying a huge tank full of water and Water-types than one big guy."
Sophocles's face turned pink in shame. "I'm sorry, Lana..."
"And you said you were hitting the gym more often. So much for that."
"Hey, I just started out, okay?! Lumiose wasn't built in a day!"
"Uh, guys?" Serena asked. "Maybe you two would be better off if you discussed this while not, you know, holding a tank that weighs, like, a billion tons?!"
For the first time, Lana noticed that Serena's and Lillie's legs were both trembling. "Oh! Sorry!"
With that, the quartet spent the next few minutes carrying the tank into the open garage. Once they finally set it down to the ground, Lillie and Sophocles collapsed at the same time, their muscles aching with utmost relief. Even Serena was hunched over and panting from exhaustion. However, Lana looked unaffected even in the slightest, merely dusting her hands and regarding the tank and its contents with pride. Then, the Water-type specialist glanced at Serena with a quirked eyebrow.
"Hey, Serena?" Lana asked. "What's going on?"
"What do you mean...?" Serena responded between pants.
"Why'd you ask me if Sophocles and I noticed anything unusual?"
The honey-blonde froze in alarm. "I...I don't know what you're talking about."
Lana narrowed her eyes and pouted. Normally, to Serena, the blue-haired woman would've looked absolutely adorable. However, there was a dark shadow cast over her eyes, highlighting her suspicion, which made the Performer's blood grow cold.
"Okaaaaay..." Lana replied.
Sensing the worst, Serena quickly walked over to Lillie and helped her up to her feet. "Come on, Lil. We gotta get going. Those, uh, those groceries aren't gonna wait forever!"
"H-Huh?" Lillie glanced at Lana, then at Serena. "B-But why don't we-?"
"Lana and Sophocles are clearly busy." The honey-blonde started pushing her friend out of the garage and back onto the pathway. "Come on, Ash depends on us to, you know, do this right."
Lillie ambivalently pursed her lips. "Well...if you insist-"
"Wait, girls!"
Both blondes froze at the sound of Lana's voice. Then, Lillie turned around, followed by a reluctant Serena, who moved slower. They could see Lana helping Sophocles back up and then standing at the garage's edge with her arms on her hips. Serena tried her best to suppress a nervous gulp.
"I don't know what's going on here," Lana continued, "but if you two don't mind telling me what to look out for, then Sophocles and I will keep an eye out. You can count on us to report to you if we see something." She lightly elbowed Sophocles in the side. "Right, hon?"
"R-Right!" Sophocles replied, blatantly trying his best to get through his physical exhaustion.
"W-Well..." Lillie said, before her voice trailed off.
Serena swiftly stepped in. "You'll know when you see it. Come on, Lillie!"
With that, she grabbed her friend's hand and half-dragged her away from Lana's home. She didn't want to look over her shoulder and check on Lana and Sophocles. After all, she could already feel the former's piercing gaze of suspicion boring into the back of her head.
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"
"Dodge, then counter with Stone Edge, Lycanroc!"
Serena and Lillie's path eventually took them to a battlefield deep in the heart of Hau'oli City. There, they found, to their surprise, Kiawe and Gladion in the middle of a heated battle, with both men laser-focused on their opponents and their strategies. With a roar, Kiawe's Charizard launched a stream of fire from its mouth. This was promptly dodged by Gladion's Lycanroc, who jumped high into the air and then landed back on the ground with a resonant thud, thereby triggering pillars of rock to emerge from the ground.
"Dodge it, Charizard!" Kiawe shouted. "Go airborne!"
Charizard complied and took to the skies with successive, mighty flaps of its wings. However, the unperturbed Gladion kept his eye on the airborne Fire-type.
"Crunch, Lycanroc!" commanded the blond man. "Go!"
With a bestial growl, Lycanroc jumped atop one of the stone pillars, using it as a starting-point to propel itself further in the air. But before it could land the hit...
"Big bro!"
Lillie's voice caused both Charizard and Lycanroc to freeze in midair. With its momentum now gone, Lycanroc suddenly fell through the air, howling and flailing in panic.
"GAH!" Kiawe shouted. "Charizard, catch Lycanroc!"
The Flame Pokémon didn't need to be told twice. It swooped underneath its comrade and caught it on its back with ease. As it landed on the ground and set the traumatized Wolf Pokémon to the ground, Kiawe and Gladion approached Serena and Lillie.
"L-Lil," Gladion greeted in surprise. He then looked at Serena and nodded respectfully at her. "And Serena."
"What're you two doing here?" asked Kiawe.
"We were looking for-" began Lillie, before Serena clasped her hand over her friend's mouth.
"Ohhhhh, you know!" Serena exclaimed, trying her best to sound cheerful. "Just, uh, just passing by! Looking for that hot new clothing store, actually."
"You mean Hau'oli Deluxe Boutique?" Kiawe asked. "If so, it's the other way."
"Oh?" Then, the honey-blonde remembered her act. "O-Oh! I-I knew that! But you know Lillie." She patted her friend in the back, much to the latter's displeasure. "She noticed your battle and wanted to cheer you on first."
Gladion raised an eyebrow in surprise before looking back and forth between the two young women. "I see..."
"Anyway, sorry that we interrupted your battle! We gotta get going now. I can just hear that new clothing line calling my name! Come on, Lil!"
"But wait, Serena!" protested Lillie. "Aren't we gonna ask them if they've seen-?"
Serena immediately moved to cover Lillie's mouth, but the damage was done.
"Seen what?" Kiawe asked.
Gladion merely blinked with slight curiosity.
"Oh, nothing," Serena replied as innocently as she possibly could.
"No, I heard Lillie," Kiawe said. "You girls were looking for something? Or..." His eyes narrowed, and the smoldering intensity was starting to become evident within his pupils. "Are you two trying to hide something from us?"
The Vaniville Town native swallowed. "N-N-No! Lil and I aren't trying to hide anything from you guys! Nothing! Nothing at all! Wh-What makes you think that?!"
Kiawe scowled distrustfully at Serena. Then, he stared deep into Lillie's green eyes with his own. Serena could feel her friend twitch in her grasp, and she knew in an instant that Lillie was feeling absolutely conflicted over keeping a secret from her friends.
"Is there something going on, Lillie?" Kiawe asked. "You can tell me. I'm your friend too; I won't judge."
Then, Gladion blurted out, "Are you pregnant?"
Serena's, Lillie's, and Kiawe's heads snapped toward Gladion's direction at the same time. The random and out-of-left-field question left the trio utterly stunned and befuddled. Once the question began to sink in, Lillie's face turned florid, and Serena pursed her lips in awkward discomfort.
"Am I...WHAT?!" Lillie shrieked.
"Look, sis," Gladion replied, "there's no shame in that. You don't have to hide it from me, or Mom and Dad. Remember, our family's back together after all this time, so we should face problems as a family-"
"I-I'm not pregnant, Gladion!"
Gladion arched an eyebrow in suspicion. "Really?"
"Really-really!"
"Well..." He narrowed his eyes. "Even so, you've been going out on your own more lately, and you've been acting elusive with me, Mom, and Dad too."
"O-On my own?! I keep telling you, Gladion! I'm hanging out with Mallow and Lana-"
"That's not what they've been telling me."
"W-WAIT, THEY BLABBED?!" Then, Lillie turned away to conceal the dark, malevolent expression that crept onto her fair visage. "Traitors..."
Serena immediately stepped in. "For your information, she's been hanging out with me, Gladion!"
Gladion shot the honey-blonde a surprised glance. "You?"
"Yes, me!" The gears in Serena's head spun at lightning-fast speeds as she cooked up a convincing lie on the spot. "She-She's been consulting me for fashion advice."
"Fashion advice?" repeated a suspicious Gladion. "And why is that?"
"Can't a girl be allowed to change up her wardrobe every once in a while?! That's why the two of us were headed to the boutique in the first place! So, if you'll excuse us, boys..."
With that, she grabbed her friend's hand and half-dragged her away from the two young men. She didn't want to look over her shoulder and check on Kiawe and Gladion. After all, she could already feel the latter's piercing gaze of suspicion boring into the back of her head.
"Just so we're clear...you really aren't pregnant, are you?"
"Are you frigging kidding me, Serena?!"
Serena was immediately floored by the way Lillie responded, and how red-faced the blonde girl looked. Chuckling nervously, she waved her palms in a gesture of surrender.
"Okay, okay, question answered, question answered!" The honey-blonde lowered her hands with one last, sheepish chuckle, before softly asking, "Look, Lillie, since you're clearing hiding your boyfriend from your family as well-"
"I'm not telling you who he is," Lillie interrupted grumpily. "I promised him that."
"Okay, well, at least tell me this: does he live in Alola?"
Lillie harrumphed. "Big Bro just said that I've been going out on my own lately. You figure it out from there."
"...Touché, touché." Then, Serena cracked a small smile at her friend. "You must really like him if you're that committed to keeping him a secret."
"Stop, Serena."
The Performer shook her head. "No, Lillie. I'm sorry, but I really wanna talk about this, because this is some big stuff!"
"No, stop right there, Serena."
"Like, I've never seen you so invested and dedicated in something before! I think it's wonderful and amazing and-"
"No, Serena, I see something!"
This finally caught the honey-blonde's attention. She followed Lillie's gaze and realized that she had been staring at a row of bushes adjacent to some buildings. Lillie strode resolutely across the town square that the two young women were currently in and approached one of these bushes, with Serena trailing right behind her. The blonde knelt down to inspect the area more closely, which piqued Serena's intrigue.
"What do you see, Lillie?" Serena asked.
Lillie didn't respond. Instead, she plucked something from the twigs and showed it to her. Serena gasped, for it was a shred of cloth with a familiar Teddiursa pattern on it.
"Lei's already been here," Lillie concluded.
"LEEEEEI?!" Serena immediately called in desperation. "LEEEEEIIIII! LEEEEEIIIII!"
As for Lillie, she inspected the shred of Lei's diaper and smelled it before recoiling. "Yep, still fresh. He couldn't have gotten far."
With that, the two young women spread out, scouring the town square for clues. After spending a few minutes searching the area for the baby boy, they reconvened, their faces flushed in exhaustion and their skins coated with films of sweat.
"Did you find any sign of him?" Serena asked between pants.
"No, I haven't," Lillie replied despondently.
"Well, he's gotta be around here somewhere if that diaper piece still has his little accident on it!"
"But where else are we gonna look?! We've looked through every nook and cranny of this area!" Lillie clutched the sides of her head in despair. "Ohhhhh, we should've just told Big Bro and Kiawe why we were actually here! They could've helped us! They could've!"
"No!" Serena squeaked. "It's good that we didn't! If we did, they would've called Ash immediately!"
Lillie crossed her arms in frustration. "Well, maybe we would've found Lei by now if we'd gotten Ash involved in the search in the first Arceus-darn place! Ohhhhh, why, oh why didn't you let me tell Big Bro and Kiawe what was really going on?! Or Lana and Sophocles, for that matter?! OR ASH IN THE FIRST PLACE?! Who knows what we might find when we finally catch up to Lei now?! W-Wh-What if we find him...him..."
Serena's eyes widened in horror, and she snapped, "Don't you dare say that, Lil! Remember what Ash always says!"
"Never give up till the end..." But Lillie's face was still overcast with despondence. "But we've wasted enough time as it is! We need more help, Serena!"
"We'll, we've got our Pokémon-"
"I'm not just talking about our Pokémon, Serena! We need more manpower!"
"Or womanpower."
Serena and Lillie froze simultaneously at the sound of the familiar voice. The former slowly turned around and saw Mallow standing a few feet away, plastic bags full of food dangling from her arms and her usual cheeriness adorning her tanned face.
"So," Mallow continued in an upbeat voice, "what is it that's got you girls with long faces? Maybe I can help out."
Before Serena could think of something to respond with, Lillie already did it for her.
"Lei's gone missing, Mallow! Serena and I have been looking all over for him! Please, you gotta help us find him!"
The gushing, bubbly optimism drained from Mallow's face in an instant. "Lei's gone WHAT?!"
Serena lowered her face in shame. "Yeah... Lei's missing..."
"Hooooo, crud! Arceus, did you call Ash?! He can have Rowlet take to the skies and-"
"No, Ash doesn't know," Lillie interrupted.
Serena gulped, sensing that her friend was going to Rattata her out. She screwed her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable.
"He left his Rotom Phone at home."
The honey-blonde opened her eyes in surprise.
"Of course he did," Mallow replied flatly. Then, she looked around in concern. "Well, I guess it's for the best if he doesn't know right now. The news would be enough to give him a heart attack."
"Y-Ye-Yeah!" Serena exclaimed, lifting her head just in time to see Lillie shooting her a surreptitious wink. "Th-That's what I thought as well."
"Well, we don't have a moment to lose! Hey, Big Brother!"
Serena and Lillie followed Mallow's gaze into the short distance. They sweat-dropped upon seeing a panting, hunchbacked Ulu lumbering towards them with three plastic bags hanging from each hand and a dozen more stacked on his back.
"Ohhh, sis," Ulu grunted, overwhelmed with exhaustion while he kept his head down. "I love you, and I know how important this dish is to you, but did you really have to make me carry all these?" He finally raised his head and noticed Serena and Lillie for the first time. "Oh! Sup, girls? Hey, be good pals, will ya, and help me out with some of this load-"
"No time for that, Ulu," Mallow interrupted urgently. "Lei's gone missing. We gotta find him."
"Lei?" The older chef blinked incredulously while his shoulders buckled under the weight. "As in the Professors' son Lei?"
The green-haired girl crossed her arms. "How many other Leis do we know on Alola, Big Bro?"
"...Oh. Right." Ulu chuckled nervously before clearing his throat. "O-Okay, lemme just get all of these off my back, and then we can get this show-"
"Ohhhhh, no you don't, Ulu." Mallow grabbed her brother's shoulder before he could begin to lower the bags. "I'm not leaving these ingredients out here for some colony of Durant to go out and raid. Just send out your Lickitung instead."
"What?" Ulu looked like he was about to burst into tears. "But...But why?!"
"Someone's gotta carry all of this while we look for Lei."
"Can't I just pass some of this off to Serena and Lillie?"
"And interfere with their search? I think not." With that, Mallow produced two Poké Balls and threw them in the air. "Come on out, you two!"
The devices opened, unleashing her Tsareena and Shaymin. The Fruit Pokémon crooned and did a respectful curtsy in front of Serena and Lillie, while the miniscule Gratitude Pokémon stretched its stubby legs before sniffing the air.
"Alright!" Serena exclaimed in relief. She and Lillie then took out their own Poké Balls and used them to summon their own Pokémon. "It's time to put an end to this. Let's find Lei."
"YEAH!" Lillie and Mallow replied at the same time, while their Pokémon let out cries and barks of affirmation.
"Yaaaaayyyyy..." mumbled the exhausted Lei.
"A-da, A-da! Ka-cha, Ka-cha!"
In the shadows of an alleyway tucked between buildings, Lei crawled along the grimy, trash-filled ground, not caring in the slightest that it was making his hands, knees, and clothes dirty. In fact, it reminded him of certain playtimes where he and Ash would dive into mud after a rainy day while his parents were away. Getting dirty like that meant mud-fights, and mud-fights like that meant bathtime afterwards, where he could splash the soapy water as much as his heart desired.
But there was nothing that his heart desired even more than seeing A-da and Ka-cha.
"A-da! Ka-cha!"
All of a sudden, Lei stopped and turned around with a clueless look on his face. He could hear strange sounds nearby, sounds that he had never heard before. At first, he saw nothing behind him but shadows and fluttering trash that was picked up by the breeze. There were no other people around him. Even so, the baby boy wasn't frightened at all. Every time he saw A-da in person or on the flashy glass window, he was always happy and brave. To Lei, it was easy being happy and brave like him.
Then, Lei realized that he wasn't alone. Three figures silently emerged from the shadows, ready to pounce on him.
"Okay, how do you know he's around here?"
Serena, Lillie, Mallow, Ulu, and their Pokémon were standing in a corner of the town square, next to a row of porta-potties. Civilians and tourists alike strolled past them without a care in the world, while the bright, golden Sun radiated its warm light upon the area. However, the mood surrounding the quartet was anything but ordinary and whimsical.
"Because we found this piece of Lei's diaper near here," Serena said, raising the shred of cloth as proof. "He's a baby; he couldn't have gotten far from here."
"Well, don't you think someone would've noticed him by now?" Ulu asked tiredly while sweeping his gaze across the square. "I mean, I don't know about you, but this is a pretty packed place. Lei would've been hard to miss."
Serena sighed and shook her head in exasperation. "Lei's just like Ash, more than anybody knows or would like to admit. Always seeking out adventures. If anyone would find a way to get past a crowd of people undetected, it would be the two of them." She cast a concerned look over her shoulder. "Lei just has to think of it as a journey, just like the ones his big brother goes on."
"And this journey...would lead him to one of these?" Ulu pointed his chin at the nearest porta-potty. "I find that hard to believe."
"Well, we have to think outside the box. Ash isn't above getting himself dirty, and I've seen Lei during his baths. Now, why don't you help us out and look inside?"
The male chef's eyes widened in revulsion. "Wh-Wh-Why would he be hiding in there?! I mean, I took a whiff of the place when we passed by it! Let's just say...anyone would be losing a lot of precious pounds by the time they come back out!"
"Yeah..." Mallow remarked with her brow quirked in doubt. "So, when you say 'anyone', do you mean yourself?"
"No!" Then, Ulu chuckled sheepishly. "W-Well, yes, j-just a little, but-"
Mallow crossed her arms with a pout. "You're a guy, aren't you?"
"Yes, but-"
"Then you should be used to foul smells by now! Yeesh, bro! First the shopping bags and now this! Lei's depending on us, so be a man and suck it up!"
Ulu gawked at his sister, affronted. "I-I-I am sucking it up, Mallow! But I'm just saying that-"
"But?" Mallow smirked tauntingly at him. "Doesn't sound like you're sucking it up, Big Bro." Then, she shrugged in faux-concern. "Gee, I wonder what Nina would think if she saw you backing down so hard like this-"
"Fine! But does that mean you girls will help me carry this stuff?"
He raised the shopping bags for emphasis, but this only earned him disapproving scowls from Mallow, Serena, and Lillie.
"I just asked you if you were a guy a few seconds ago, Big Bro," Mallow replied.
Realizing that he wasn't going to win in that regard, Ulu groaned and gently set the bags to the ground. "Fine! Fine, fine, fine..."
He continued grumbling in frustrated disappointment while he opened up the first of the porta-potties and peeked his head inside. Mallow sighed and shook her head in response.
"I can do without the grumpy attitude, Big Bro, thank you very much," the green-haired woman said.
"I have a great attitude, sis," retorted the older man. "I dunno what the heck you're talking ab-"
He was abruptly cut off by the sound of a scream, which caused the quartet to instinctively go silent. Though the scream came from a slight distance, there was no mistaking the voice to Serena and Lillie. Both females' skins became pale in almost an instant, and they looked at each other with horrified realization.
"LEI!" they cried at the same time.
They burst into a full-on sprint, with Mallow trailing right behind them. Ulu sighed in relief and closed the door to the porta-potty, just as a tourist urgently ran up to it with his face flushed.
"HEY!" the tourist cried in frustration. "What the heck, man?! You're not gonna hold the door open for a brother?!"
Ulu chuckled in embarrassment. "Oh. S-Sorry."
The chef promptly tried to open the door, only to realize that the handle wouldn't budge. He gawked at it in confusion and immediately spotted the bright-red notification reading 'OCCUPIED'. Then, he glanced at the tourist, whose arms were now crossed, and shot him a smile of sheepish guilt.
"Well, uh...gotta be careful with those locks, am I right...?"
It didn't take Serena and Lillie long to find where the scream came from. The pair of young women ran into a dark alleyway tucked between buildings and saw none other than Lei sitting in the middle of the cramped, shadowy space. However, he wasn't facing them; instead, his gaze was transfixed upon the mass of shadows that were advancing upon him.
"LEI!" Serena shrieked. "Lei, get away from them! Come over here!"
But the baby boy didn't listen. Instead, he continued to watch while the shadowy beings finally came into what little light was able to penetrate the alleyway. Serena and Lillie gasped upon recognizing the threats.
"A Venomoth!" Serena cried.
"A Drapion!" exclaimed Lillie.
"And a Muk?!" Mallow yelled as she joined Serena's side.
The Shiny Alolan Muk and the Drapion roared challengingly at them, with the former gathering its pooling sludge into its body and thereby increasing its size as an intimidation tactic. As for the Venomoth, it made a chittering sound as it swooped towards Lei, its pincers at the ready. To Serena's horror, however, Lei didn't make any efforts to move or to even emit any further screams. Instead, he did the unthinkable.
"He's clapping and laughing?!" the honey-blonde thought.
Meanwhile, Lillie was quick to act. "Snowy, use Blizzard to protect Lei!"
There was a brief but blinding flash of light that finally caught Lei's attention. When the light subsided, the Alolan Ninetales jumped in front of the baby and barked at the approaching Venomoth. When it refused to desist and drew closer, the Fox Pokémon promptly used the Ice-type attack. The cramped walls of the alleyway served to narrow the Blizzard's focus, showering the three enemy Pokémon with an intense deluge of snow and ice. This gave Serena enough time to spring towards Lei, her felt-hat falling off in the process. With a gasp of immense relief, she picked him up and held him tightly in her arms.
"Oh, my Arceus, Lei!" she cried while staring into the infant's now-confused eyes. "We were worried SICK about you! Don't you EVER go wandering off like that on your own again, do you hear me?!"
However, Lei didn't say anything and simply stared at her with wide, innocent eyes. She blinked at him hesitantly, half-concerned and half-confused.
"Wha...What's wrong, Lei?" she asked.
Then, all of a sudden, the baby boy's eyes became shiny. At first, Serena thought that Lei was finally enraptured with wonder over his future sister-in-law. But then, her dreams were shattered when his eyes became shinier, and it wasn't from any sort of wonder.
It was from tears.
"Oh no, oh no..." Serena instantly began rocking Lei in her arms. "Please don't cry, please don't cry, please don't cry-"
"WWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"
Lei's cries and wails flooded throughout the alleyway, echoing so loudly that it startled the others and forced Lillie, Mallow, and Ulu to cover their ears. Even Snowy ceased her Blizzard attack to wince from the loud noise. This allowed the Drapion to skitter forward and display its pincer-capped tail.
"Drapion!" it snarled.
With a snap of its tail pincer, Drapion opened its mouth and fired multiple purple darts from it and at Snowy. The Alolan Ninetales barked in surprise and had to jump out of the way to avoid the Poison-type attack. But this caused the darts to pelt the ground in front of Serena, Lei, and Lillie, triggering a small explosion that then kicked up a cloud of thick, purple smoke.
"Wha-?" Serena began, before she felt her skin crawl.
The tightness of the alleyway caused the purple smoke to billow towards her and her group with ease. Because of that, the smoke didn't have to reach her nostrils for her to notice the pungent smell that accompanied it.
"Everyone cover your noses!" she called. "The smoke is toxic!"
Lillie, Mallow, Ulu, and their Pokémon complied in an instant. As for Serena, she frantically stuffed her free hand into one of her pockets and pulled out the only thing that she had the forethought to bring: a soft, blue handkerchief. Simultaneously, she held her breath and stuffed the handkerchief over Lei's nose. It cut off his crying, but the forcefulness of the move caused him to squirm with irritated discomfort.
"Ugh!" Serena grunted while trying to keep her breath held. "Stop fighting, Lei! Crud! Huack!"
In the process of speaking, the honey-blonde inhaled some of the smell and started coughing. The group immediately moved away from the smoke, but they could hear the Muk and Drapion following them. The Venomoth burst through the smoke and soared towards them, its eyes zeroed in on Lei.
Reacting quickly, Serena pointed at the approaching Poison Moth Pokémon. "Sylveon, use Swift! Keep Venomoth back!"
The Intertwining Pokémon nodded before planting herself in front of her Trainer. Venomoth noticed her and redirected its focus to her, but Sylveon was ready. Once her opponent got within easy striking distance, she jumped high into the air and swung its tail at its direction, releasing multiple yellow stars with golden sparkles around them. They hurtled towards Venomoth at high speeds, and with nowhere to go, the Poison-type collided into them head-on, triggering another explosion.
"Come on, everyone!" Serena called. "Let's get outta here!"
Everyone started running towards the end of the alleyway, which led back to the town square. But before they could reach it, a sewer manhole lid violently popped open several feet in front of them, and the Shiny Alolan Muk emerged from it, filling the alleyway with its distinctive stench.
"MUUUUUKKKKK!" the Sludge Pokémon roared in a bubbling voice.
"We're trapped!" Ulu cried with widening eyes. "Good, good Arceus, we're trapped! This isn't good!"
"But how'd the Muk get in front of us?!" Mallow exclaimed.
Serena and Lillie looked over their shoulders and saw Drapion approaching the group from behind, its tail pincer snapping every few seconds. They could see the manhole cover that the Ogre Scorpion Pokémon was skittering over. Then, they saw the Venomoth recover from Sylveon's Swift and take to the air again with a particularly furious chitter.
"Wh-Wh-What're we gonna do now, Serena?!" exclaimed Lillie.
Serena looked down at Lei, who had finally stopped crying and squirming and was now looking up at her with wide, youthful eyes of wonder, eyes that almost reminded her of Ash's. Then, she noticed something lying on the ground by her foot, and it was her felt-hat. Taking a deep breath, she knelt down, picked up the hat with her free hand, and put it back on. In response, Lei let out a small babble.
"We battle our way out of it," Serena replied resolutely. "How else?"
A/N: And that's the end of this chapter!
Yeah, you read that right. That's the end of the second chapter. But don't fret, for it's not the end just yet. That's because, as of this writing, I decided last week to slightly expand this two-shot into a three-shot. The next chapter will be the final chapter, guaranteed. I know I promised that this project would be a two-shot (even in the opening Author's Note), but as I was going along, I realized that this chapter was getting too long for it to be wieldy as one single chapter. Therefore, I made the decision to split it into two parts. Plus, it was getting a little difficult trying to churn out the ending scene right there. Writer's block really can be a bee-otch. Fortunately, I think I ended the chapter on a satisfactory, appropriate note, and the third and final chapter will take things from there.
Anyway, now that I've reached the end of this chapter, I feel like not a lot of progress was made in countering my writer's block. However, I've been away from "The Way We Will Be" (the current version, that is) long enough for me to maybe take another crack at it with fresh eyes. So, I'll begin working on the next chapter for that and try to get it out by the end of next month. But don't quote me on that. Wish me luck! :D :D :D
Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter! TheCartoonFanatic01 is out. PEACE!