Upon returning to Lively Town, the Expedition Society went somewhat dormant. Buizel tried to carry out missions only he could accomplish while the rest continued researching Alex and Robin's fate. Ampharos spent most of his time working with Mawile, reviewing again any historical documents and legends they had surrounding disappearances across the world. This process continued what the Expedition Society began after Alex vanished, only now with more information.

However, Robin wasn't the only pokemon who disappeared that day. In a sense, Jirachi was gone as well.

The pokemon fell into a deep sleep after Robin vanished, and unlike his previous days-long naps, nothing the guild tried roused him. Ampharos called upon Xatu to confirm what he hoped their journey to Destiny Tower accomplished; while Jirachi's body remained, his soul was absent.

Splash and Cinder spent most of their time together, trying to raise each other's spirits and keep their hope alive, but as the days dragged on, their doubts continued to mount. That is, until Ampharos called them into a meeting.

"I have good news for you both," he said as they gathered in his office. "Dedenne has established a line of communication with Jirachi."

Splash and Cinder exchanged puzzled looks. "I thought Jirachi's soul was missing," he said.

"Not missing. 'Spatially adjacent' is probably more accurate. Cinder, it's time I shared what Robin and I discussed before the incident at Destiny Tower," he said.

Cinder caught her breath, focusing hard on Ampharos' words. She had been hoping for some clue on Robin's whereabouts, but didn't expect it to tie back to that moment.

"Before we departed, Mawile, Jirachi and I hatched a plan," he began. "Jirachi has powerful psychic abilities, exceeding even that of pokemon like Alakazam or Xatu. When Jirachi sleeps, his soul begins to wander freely. I suspected that if we visited the site of Alex's disappearance, then there was a chance that Robin might suffer the same fate. With that possibility in mind-"

"You WHAT?!" shouted Cinder, cutting him off as her repressed anger suddenly flared. "You KNEW something would happen to Robin?!"

"Please, try to remain calm," said Ampharos, holding up his hands. "I understand you're upset at me, but please hear me out."

"You've got 60 seconds," said Cinder, already feeling another Flare Blitz rising within her.

Ampharos audibly gulped. "I thought there might be a chance he would disappear, but I hoped against it. Just in case, I asked for a great deal from Jirachi. I shared this plan with Robin, and he agreed it may be our best hope of finding Alex and bringing her home. Understand that I didn't lure him into some kind of underhanded trap. He knew the risk and trusted me. He trusted you as well."

Ampharos folded his arms and tried to explain. "In the event that Robin began exhibiting similar symptoms to Alex, our idea was to use him as a beacon of sorts. After Alex disappeared, we found no trace of her, despite how hard we searched. With no other leads, Mawile presented me with the theory that Alex may have departed this world for another. Something we didn't consider seriously after the battle with Dark Matter was the possibility that her and Mew's first encounter with the monster was the only time she lost her memory, but in light of her disappearance, Mawile considered that theory further."

"She believes that Alex did not originate from this world, but rather a different reality. One parallel to our own. We hoped that, should something happen to Robin, we could use him to find our way to this other world and try to bring Alex home. The first problem was getting there. If her theory proved true, it meant that only someone who doesn't belong in this world in the first place could cross back to their own. To test this, we needed Robin's help. Yet, even if he could find a way to traverse the void and make it to where he and Alex came from, there would be no connection back to us. That's where Jirachi came in."

"Time's up," growled Cinder. Her feathers started to glow.

"Wait, Cinder," urged Splash. "Let's let him finish. If he's wrong, we have every right to be mad, but let's at least let him speak."

Cinder shot Splash a betrayed glare. "What are you saying?" she asked. "Alex is gone too, and we don't have any idea where she or Robin are. Besides, what he's saying is bullshit. Robin came from the future in this world, not somewhere else. How can you not be furious right now?"

"I think that's what Ampharos is trying to explain," he said. "It's true that I'm sad. Robin is my friend now too, and I miss him, but don't forget that you're the one that gave me hope that we could find Alex. Let me return the favor. Let Ampharos finish. And, if he's wrong…" Splash's tone suddenly darkened. "We'll take him on together," he finished, glaring at the chief.

Ampharos looked nervous, but he continued. "Thank you, Splash. I promise I'm going somewhere with this."

"Then hurry up," said Cinder, trying to keep her flames under control.

"Right. So, about Jirachi," he continued, "what he did was risky, but it might be the key to bringing them both home. The plan was to put himself to sleep, and attempt to bind his soul to Robin's as he vanished. I'm pleased to announce that the plan seems to have worked. Jirachi is alive, and so is Robin."

Cinder's heart nearly stopped. "You're serious?" she asked.

"Certainly. At the moment when Jirachi bound his soul to Robin, Dedenne tried to lock in on the frequency of that energy. She believes she found it, and has finally traced it back to where it now originates."

"She and Xatu are working together to try and speak with Jirachi, and they've been able to get a few messages back and forth. That being said, their attempts to reach Robin have been less successful."

"What do you mean?" asked Cinder. Her rage was starting to die down, replaced with concern.

"Jirachi should have been able to relay our messages to Robin, but it appears something is interfering with that communication. It's as if Robin is trying to ignore Jirachi. We don't understand why yet, but if Jirachi's claims are true, it sounds like Robin is being convinced that his life here was just a dream, and that Jirachi is some kind of hallucination."

"But why?" asked Splash. "Is something wrong with him? Why would he be trying to pretend we don't exist?" He glanced at Cinder, feeling the pain in her eyes as if it was his own. Is Alex thinking the same thing? Does she believe we were all just a dream, and is going back to her life in another world? Is she really leaving me behind?

"We still don't know," said Ampharos. "While the connection with Jirachi is weak, it still exists. Dedenne believes it will hold with Xatu's help. As long as we don't lose contact with Jirachi completely, there's still hope. If we can just find a way to get through to Robin and convince him to remember, he will begin searching for Alex wherever they ended up. That was our agreement, but as he is now, he doesn't trust his own memories."

"This still doesn't make sense," said Cinder, sounding defeated. "Robin isn't from another world. Like I said, he's from the future. How could he be in the same place as Alex if he ended up going back there?"

"Much like Alex, Mawile believes that Robin didn't originate from our world," said Ampharos. "Humans are rare, Cinder. To my knowledge, no one alive has encountered one. Robin's existence, in this time or any other, is an anomaly in and of itself. We don't have enough information to be certain, but all signs point to Robin also originating from a different world than ours."

"So then what are we supposed to do?" asked Cinder. "Just sit here?"

"For the time being, that may be all we can do," said Ampharos. "Dedenne and Xatu are still working with Jirachi. We're brainstorming a way that we can prove to Robin that we're real. Since he doesn't believe in us, we need some way to make him believe."

Cinder didn't know what to think. She was still angry at Ampharos, and even at Robin somewhat, for not explaining the plan to her.

"Why didn't you tell us sooner?" asked Splash.

"I didn't want to give either of you false hope," he said. "I'm scared for their safety as well. Maybe part of me didn't want to imagine a fate where one of my friends was gone. Worse yet, that she may be somewhere we could never reach her. Now, I can hope again. We all can. So please, give Dedenne and Xatu more time. I'm sure they'll come up with something."

"Can… can I talk to Robin?" asked Cinder.

"Hmm…" Ampharos considered that question for a minute. "Probably not directly, but you might be able to get a message to Jirachi through Xatu and Dedenne."

"Then let's go," said Cinder, already making her way out of the room.

"Splash, take her to Jirachi's observatory," said Ampharos. "Dedenne and Xatu should still be there right now."

Splash gave one hesitant look at Ampharos before following her out.

Ampharos sighed. "I'm sorry," he said under his breath. "I'm so, so sorry."

Meanwhile, in the human world…

Robin awoke with a start. He gasped for air and sat up quickly.

"Whoa, take it easy," said Alex. She sat in a chair across from him. "How are you feeling?"

Robin's head was spinning. He rubbed his eyes and looked around. He was in a modest living room with only a few pieces of furniture, laying on a couch with a blanket over him. His jacket and satchel were nowhere in sight, but he was still otherwise dressed. "Where am I?" he asked groggily.

"You're at my Dad's house," she said, making a face as she said the last word. "But, you're safe. What do you remember?"

Robin started to lay back down. "I was walking down to the beach. I got close to the water, and I remember you being there, then…" He sat back up in a rush, realizing that this was the person who attacked him, and scrambled backwards over the back of the couch, losing his balance and tumbling over the other end. "Ouch!" he exclaimed as he landed with a thud.

"Are you okay?" asked Alex, backing up a bit.

Robin slowly peaked over the couch. "I think so," he said nervously. Who is this girl? What am I doing at her house? Where are my things? "What did you do to me?" He accidentally asked the last question out loud.

Alex clenched and unclenched her fist. "That was called Force Palm," she said. "Does that ring any bells?"

Robin thought for a moment, and decided that it did sound somewhat familiar. "I guess, but I don't know why."

"I'm sorry," said Alex, relaxing her arm and holding it with the other. "I didn't mean to. It was an accident. But to be fair, you did grab me all of a sudden. What was that about?"

"I'm not sure," he said. "I think you said something to me, but I can't remember what it was. I'm not a violent person, I promise. I'm just a librarian, not a fighter." He tried to play off the strange interaction with a chuckle, but the girl wasn't laughing.

"I'm Alex," she said. "And you?"

Alex… Why does that name sound familiar? "I'm Robin." He held out a hand, and she shook it with a smile.

"I think I know what I said that made you flip out like that."

"Really? What was it?" he asked.

"Are you sure I should say it? I don't want you to freak out again, especially in the house."

"I'll be fine," he said. "I don't think you could shock me like that again, if I know it's coming."

"Okay, if you're sure," said Alex. "Here goes. I'll tell you the same thing I did at the beach. It was a name. Tell me if it's familiar. Jirachi?" she tried.

Robin's breath caught in his throat. "I'm sorry, but did you say Jirachi?"

Alex saw Robin tense, but he still seemed calm otherwise.

"That's right," she continued. "Does that name mean anything to you?" Obviously, the answer was yes, but she had to gently get him to talk about it.

Robin looked away. "You must think I'm crazy too," he muttered.

"No, not at all!" said Alex. "I was actually hoping you knew it. Can you tell me about him?"

Robin felt like he had been drowning for the past few weeks ever since he was discharged from the hospital, battling with memories and experiences that weren't real while trying to sort out what little he could remember about his past, and someone was finally throwing him a lifeline. He walked around the couch and took a seat, so Alex joined him.

"You promise you won't laugh? Or think I'm crazy?" he asked hesitantly.

"I promise," she said, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I might even be able to help."

Something like a spark of hope warmed his heart. He took a deep breath and began.

"Jirachi is the name of my… other self," he said. "Or rather, my hallucination."

That's no hallucination, thought Alex, but she had to let him explain.

"Truth is, I was in a coma up until recently. I only just woke up a few weeks ago. Ever since then, I've been hearing this voice in my head. Some other… being, and it calls itself Jirachi."

"What does this being say?" she asked.

"All sorts of weird things. When I can hear it, at least. It's been trying to convince me that the dreams I had while I slept were real, and that I'm not supposed to be here. It tells me about this other world, one where I'm some kind of… gecko, I think? And I've got these powers, like a superhero. I've tried to ignore it, but it's hard without the help of some medication from the clinic. It must just be all in my head, but I'm not THAT creative. I don't know where thoughts like that could have even come from. I haven't taken anything for it yet today, so maybe I can talk to that side of myself now."

Robin hesitated. "Although, the psychiatrist said I shouldn't give in to it; that I should just try to ignore it until I start working with a therapist." He looked away, suddenly feeling shame at having shared so much about himself with a complete stranger.

Alex rested a hand on his, settling his trembling. "Will you try for me? I think I can help, but I need to know more," she said.

Why am I considering trusting this girl? he thought. I've never met her, but there's something about her that seems… honest. Robin's mind drifted back to his doctor's advice.

"I understand that you're scared, but this other 'you' only has as much power as you give it. You are in control. As long as you remember that fact, you'll be safe."

But will I? he thought. Here's someone who is reaching out to me about a part of myself no one seems to understand, not even me. She says she wants to help, but what can she do? And then another deeper part of himself answered, like an instinct.

Let her try.

"Okay," he finally said. "Just give me a moment to try and reach out to it." Robin closed his eyes and let his mind wander, taking deep breaths as he tried to meditate his way back to when he first woke up. Eventually, the world around him grew silent, and when he opened his eyes, he found himself in darkness, standing on a large, circular platform in space. Water pooled around his feet. Just like before…

"Jirachi, are you there?" he asked into the void. Silence. He looked around, but there was no sign of life. "Jirachi?" he asked again.

A glimmer of light started to form in front of him, and after a few moments, it seemed to solidify into a small, glowing white orb. A familiar voice rang out from it. "Robin? Can you hear me?" it asked.

"Hi, Jirachi," he sighed.

"You've never reached out to me like this," said the light, flitting around excitedly. "At least, not since you woke up. I haven't been able to talk to you lately. Dedenne has been giving me messages for us, but you wouldn't respond."

"But who is Dedenne?" he asked. "Everything you told me is just nonsense. I can't understand any of it."

The light dimmed slightly and drifted away. "That hurts, Robin," said Jirachi quietly.

"Listen, there's someone here who says she knows you," continued Robin. "Someone named Alex?"

The light suddenly flared like a firework, nearly blinding him. When Robin could see again, it had taken the form of a small, yellow and white creature. It looked something like a star.

"Alex?" asked Jirachi excitedly. "You're sure? She definitely said her name was Alex?"

"Uh, yeah?" asked Robin. "Why? Is that important?"

"She might be the one we've been looking for!" cheered Jirachi, doing a flip in the air.

"Okay, I'm not sure I follow, but I can try to get a message to her."

"Actually, do you mind if I take over for a bit?" asked Jirachi.

Robin gasped and took a reflexive step back. "Take over? You don't mean like what happened when I woke up, right?"

The little creature made a "Pft" sound and waved a hand dismissively. "That was just a misunderstanding. You were panicking, and I thought I'd take the reins for a bit to figure things out until you could calm down. Clearly THAT didn't work out the way I thought, but you're safe now. This time it'll be different. Promise."

Robin thought back to those events. Waking up in sudden and excruciating pain, the world spinning around him, and helplessly watching as he saw himself fighting off the doctors and nurses who were only trying to help him. Eventually, they managed to get him under control, but Jirachi had tried so hard to fight back that the rest of those days became bad memories he kept trying to repress. But if this is the key to understanding what's been happening to me, then I should try. I've got to. I need to be brave. The image of a small, orange feathered face smiling happily at him briefly flashed through his mind.

"Well, what do you say?" asked Jirachi, reaching a small hand out to him. "Can you trust me? Just for a little bit?"

Robin slowly reached out and shook the little creature's hand. "If you say so," he said apprehensively.

"Great! Just relax and let yourself drift off. I'll wake you up in a little bit."

Robin closed his eyes again and tried to relax. Before he knew it, the world fell away, and he drifted off into a deep sleep.

Meanwhile, Alex was watching Robin closely. She wasn't sure what to do. Would Jirachi suddenly spring forth from Robin, or maybe she would start hearing his telepathy?

What she didn't expect was for Robin to open his eyes and jump up from the couch. "Alex? Alex, where are you?" he asked as he looked around hopefully.

Alex got up and took a few steps back. "Robin, are you alright?"

He suddenly snapped his attention to her. "No way," he said breathlessly. "Alex, is that you?"

"Wait, Jirachi?" asked Alex. Alex focused her aura and checked again, seeing that Jirachi's soul was now overrepresented compared to Robin's.

"It is you!" cheered Jirachi as he spoke through Robin. He leaped at Alex and pulled her into a hug. "We found you. We finally found you!"

"Whoa, easy," said Alex, slowly wrapping her arms around him. "I don't understand. What are you doing here? How did you get here? And who is Robin?"

"Oh boy," said Jirachi, giving Alex some space. "I've got a lot to catch you up on."