Rellonheim. A day after waking up.

Outside the Triage Tent was a pitch black sky, with nothing but stray lanterns shining dimly above a path. Joyce and I have just finished the last tests, and I was freed from the clinic. I suspected that the person that led me here would be here, and yet... he was nowhere to be found. I couldn't see him... But that didn't mean he wasn't there.

Suddenly, I felt as a big and muscular arm wrapped itself around my neck from behind and tightened up, cutting off my oxygen and choking me. A bellowing laugh came from behind as well. "Ha! Got ye! Dun worry, jus' me, eh?!" He roared. There he was, hiding in the only dark spot around.

I quickly pat his arm to let him know to let me go, and a moment later, he finally did. He sighed happily as I sunk down to my knees, gasping for air and holding my throat. Geez... Getting held up by a muscular and ogre-ish man while almost getting choked to death was not on my to-do list.

Still, I should be thankful that he didn't kill me; were that to be someone else, someone with malicious intent, I'd be a goner. I looked up at the man with glassy eyes, clearing my throat and staring at the arm he extended down towards me, to help me get up. I gladly took it, grabbing his forearm as he grabbed mine and pulled myself up on two feet.

"So, Joyce got ye all glued up, ain't she?" He looked me up and down, taking special interest in the bandages on my head. "What's wit' yer head then?" Were the words he spoke. I sighed and scratched the back of my head, looking away from him and down at the ground in embarrassment.

"Oh, uh... Don't worry about me, sir! The nurse said that I should be fine, so long as nothing gives me even more brain damage than I already have!" A few seconds of silence ensued my news, with the man taking his hand and putting it over my shoulder. He walked up next to me and sighed unhappily.

"Come 'ere." He simply said and pushed me forward along the pathway, leading me somewhere. "I've known ye for years, and yer not one to lie. I trust yer word." We began going down a series of steps, leading to a small area lower than any other, like a small valley of sorts. It was circular in shape, with multiple dimly lit up signs, most of them having the word 'BAR' in them, and the other having 'CLUB'.

"Ye see, I ain't goin' to lie to ye, so I'll get that straight; yer not meant ta be here." He moved to a small, open door with a sign reading 'SERPENT'S TAVERN' right above. Guess I missed the odd sheep when I was looking around. I distinctly remember getting scared at that point in time. If I wasn't meant to be here, then staying in this place might be as bad as staying in the woods I woke up in.

And yet, I found myself compelled by his words, as if they caught me by my ankles and began to drag me along the ground into an abyss of mystery. Why was I not meant to be here? Did I do something bad? Or maybe I've been banished? Was I a civilian here once? All these thoughts running through my head at the speed of sound, and all of them vanishing equally fast.

We were walking down a narrow hallway, one which both of us were barely fitting into. A straight as a line corridor, nothing more and nothing less, lit up by dim lanterns from above. I remember him saying something, talking to me, but... it was nothing interesting. Just simple small talk, one that I couldn't really continue after a few words said.

Luckily, the awkwardness didn't last too long, much like the hallway, turning us up inside a small, empty bar. Empty, as in there were no people inside; not even the bartender was present. Must've left early today, huh? I scoffed to myself and hastily followed the leader's path. "Sit down. We gon' be here a while, mate."

I promptly agreed and sat just beside him, on a small rotating stool that could turn 360 degrees. I used this neat feature to face the man that led me here- the same man that would be telling me why I wasn't welcome in his town. I gulped audibly and watched on as he reached for a closed bottle of whiskey, secured tightly by a cork, and simply popped it open as if it was nothing.

He reached behind the counter we were sitting by and took out two tall glasses- one for me, and one for himself. I never drank alcohol, and I wanted to decline, but... I thought there would be consequences to that. That's why I took the glass and smiled at him, raising it up slightly as a way to say 'thanks' without actually saying it.

While he took the glass of spicy sweet blend of grain, water, yeast and such and took a large swig of it, I timidly took the glass in the palm of my hand and slightly tipped it over to my mouth, tasting it and immediately spitting it back out into the glass. I looked back up at him and gave him a thumbs up- didn't want him to see me as a weakling.

"So," He began, making me immediately focus on him instead of scanning my surroundings. "If ye dun' remember anythin', how'd you make it here, eh?" His eyes shot up from this drink and up to me, glaring my way with those sharp eyes of his. I smiled softly out of both awkwardness and embarrassment. I scratched the back of my head, right behind my ears.

"Ah, right..." I stammered out, looking down at the floor beneath my feet. My mind was fighting itself at that moment so fiercely that I could just feel it jump around in my head! Should I say that it was an accident? Do I just play it off cool? No, that'd look suspicious... What should I do?!

Seemingly picking up on my unimaginable stress, he took another swig of his drink and set the glass on the counter with a loud slam. It did well to catch my attention and to get my head out of the gutter. I cleared my throat. "I-I just walked in one direction and found this place... All those flags outside look really nice, sir."

You stupid idiot. You sound like a child! Why did I even say that?! I was supposed to simply say that I came here by accident, not say that those banners that were obviously meant to intimidate looked nice! I would beat myself up about it later, but right then and there, I had to act fast and sound smart- I could not dare to disagree with him, especially after saying something like that...

"Righto. Ye wake up in sum' cave and ye travel specifically here. There's many other towns ye could'v' picked- why this 'un?" He said as he leaned over on his elbows, supporting them on his knees and staring up at me from behind his hands. I couldn't see it, but I swore he was smiling... grinning... mocking me.

Was this some sort of attempt to aggravate me? Back then, I felt as if something was stirring up within me, something so violent and yet so passive at the same time... Much like a popular saying I would hear later in my travels; "A wolf in sheep's clothing". Such a violent creature posing itself as something unable to fight... Unable to fight back.

I swallowed hard again, clearing my throat afterwards. I could tell he was getting impatient with my daydreaming. "...I-It was an honest accident. I truly did know where I was going." I looked up at him, seeing his pose had changed. He now had his back straightened out, with his arms crossed over his chest. It was such an imposing appearance...

He nodded my way, staying still for a moment or two and staring at me. Staring into me. Like a predator would eye its prey, right before bouncing at it from behind a bush and killing it in an instant... I was the prey here. Both he and I knew that were he to attack me, I would not be able to fight back; I'd be defenseless, dead on the spot!

I began sweating, wiping my forehead just as a small droplet began to form on it- I didn't want to look scared. Not if it potentially meant life or death. "S-So..." I began, trying to lighten the mood and try to distract him from my earlier words. "You said I'm not meant to be here... Why?" It was my turn to go on the offensive.

He scoffed, looking away and at his half empty glass of alcohol, his eyes looking back at themselves through the reflection on the liquid. "Ye had a brawl. A bad 'un. Ye also stole quite a big sum from the bar's 'ere. Got a lot on yer tab an' all." He looked back to me. There it was again, that sharp glare of his. "I ain't got no problem wit' ye. The peoples tho..." He moved his shoulders upwards in a shrug.

I was a troublemaker? "Who did I fight?" I leaned forwards on my elbows, my curiosity piqued. It was at this moment that he picked the bottle of whiskey up again and tilted it over above his glass, filling it back up to full again. He took the glass and took yet another swig. Looked to me like he had some real trust to his head's strength...

"Ah, nobody. Jus' sum royal, thas' all." He waved his hand at me nonchalantly. Huh? HUH?! I FOUGHT WITH A ROYAL?! "A-As in a king or a queen?!" I couldn't contain my words, nor my excitement. In hindsight, I should have just opted to stay quiet and take the news more quietly, not burst out like that.

He nodded, confirming my question. What the hell was the past me thinking?! Was he stupid or something?! If I could, I would punch him so hard he'd end up in the oblivion! I looked down at the ground again out of embarrassment, a bit shaken up by the information. Was that why that guard immediately called his king when he saw me...?

I hid my face in the palms of my hand, sighing into them and shaking my head. I really must have been either a bad person, or a stupid one in the past... I looked up to see the man in front of me snickering to himself from behind his glass, very clearly amused. I sighed again and sat up, looking over to my left and at the glass I had left there.

"...Did I have a name?" I shyly asked, side-eyeing my informant and waiting patiently for his answer. If he knows so much about me already, he must know what my name is... right? Well, he did, but he didn't want to tell me. Not even after I pleaded and begged him to tell me!

"Ye did, but from wha' I can tell..." He put his glass down on the counter and leaned against it, resting his head on his elbow and looking back at me. "...yer not really keen on returning to yer past self... are ya?" He smiled at me once more, this time though, it felt different.

It wasn't some snarky smile, the one that someone would give you after either lying to your face or beating you in a simple game. This one was... a kind one. Like that of a grandparent, smiling down at their grandchildren that just got a new toy and are happily playing around with it. Like a parent, watching their kid grow up right before their eyes as time passes infinitely fast.

He wasn't trying to scare me, or intimidate me; this time, he was being genuinely kind. A slither of himself that is hiding beneath all the muscles and grit; a kind and happy, young gentleman ready to help whenever and wherever he can.

I fidgeted with my hands a little, looking down at them again in embarrassment. I was stumped, not knowing what to say. I imagined myself being a fearless and fearsome hunter, or at least a trouble maker that would "steal from the rich and give to the poor"! A justice bringing outlaw, one that didn't care about how others looked at him and did what he thought was right.

But now, after what I've heard about my past self... I wasn't so sure about all that. From what I could tell, Iwasa fearsome and fearless outlaw, just not the one that would bring outright justice. He would instead mess with people, with fighting someone being a daily routine for him.

I wasn't that kind of person. I didn't want to be that kind of person. I wanted to be a kind and quiet hero, one that would sit in the dark and help from inside of it, never getting the attention he probably deserved, but being happy that he could help nonetheless. I wanted to be a better person, someone who wouldn't stoop as low as my previous self did, to the point of beating up a royal figure.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, turning my head upwards and looking up from the ground, back to the man in front of me. I nodded my head at him. "You're right. I'm not. I think it's time to turn over a new leaf."

He sighed and stood up from his seat, maintaining the kind smile on his face and turning away from me. "Come 'ere." He commanded me. Naturally, I obeyed, and began following him to the other end of the room, where he suddenly stopped in front of the wall and stared up at it. I moved to his side and followed his gaze, my eyes ending up on a few pictures up high on the wall.

It was... me? And he was there too! Along with some other people I haven't seen yet. I could only speculate at that point that this was our big friend group, composed of big and small, tall and short, male and female pokemon. Every single one of us was different...

There were quite a lot of pictures there, some more embarrassing that others, but all of them showing the same group of friends. One of them, however... It was was different, that's for sure. And that was also the one that the man reached out for, grabbing it with his long arm and bringing it closer to his face.

Unlike the rest of them, all of the people on the picture were labelled, like wares in a store. There was Juliette, a small and brown mouse-like pokemon, Arnold the big and transparent ghost with his mouth wide open, Zeke the slim black and white striped badger, Cassidy the serious looking duck with a shield and a sword, and two crossed over faces- one was mine, the other was that of a black and teal owl.

I looked back up at the man, then back to the picture again. I pointed at the badger called Zeke, and just like a child would, I asked him the famous question that one asks when browsing a family album: "Was that you?"

He sighed, sounding tired and sad, but keeping a smile. It was like he was keeping himself from crying, barely holding on... "Zeke was.. He was stupid. I dun' go by Zeke anymore. I dun' go by any name now." He said as his head fell a little lower, very obviously sad about the memories. I decided not to open old wounds and moved on. I pointed at my face next- the only one with its name crossed out.

"Aye, thas' you alright. Ye were a cocky bastard, if I have to be honest. Only 'un other person liked ya." It was his turn to point fingers, as he moved aside mine with his own and pointed at the person just beside me that was hugging me by my shoulder, smiling widely from behind the drawn-on cross on their face.

"Simone..." The text above their head read, circled with a marker, as if they were some sort of target. "Poor Simone... Got stuck in sum cave and never made it out." Zeke narrated, shaking his head and turning it towards me. "Say, mate... How badly do ye want yer memories back?" He took my hands and put the framed photo in them, shutting them close and looking up at my face. "Take it. Maybe ye will find 'em."

I looked down at the photo in my hands and back up to Zeke. At that very moment, I wanted to say something, I tried saying something, I even opened my mouth to speak, but... No words came out. I was speechless. It wasn't the random act of generosity that got me, but the act itself.

It looked as if he had already tried himself, but gave up and lost all hope of finding his friends and reuniting with them ever again along the way. Zeke hadn't looked like it, but... He had already given up a long time ago. And since he couldn't do it, he must have thought that the best way to continue the search was to send out his old friend to do it for him.

It felt... lazy. But very touching nonetheless. I didn't want to disappoint him, or myself for that matter, so I didn't reject the gift. I clutched the frame in my hands and looked up at him, giving Zeke a nod. He did the same back to me. "...Welp, there's that." He smiled at me generously, straightening back up and looking down at me from above.

"Ye need a name, dun' ya?" He said as he began to move back to the table with our glasses, leaving me behind near the memory board. He took my glass in his hand and tilting it towards his own open mouth, drinking what had been inside in one quick swig. "Any idea, mate?"

A chance to begin anew, to rewrite history, to be the person that the past me could only dream of being, all in the palm of my hand and just barely in reach. A chance to change fate, to cheat death, and to find out what others could not. I could taste it- the crisp aroma of a new life, beating right in front of me, begging to be released to see and explore the world.

Zeke's words echoed in my mind, jumping from one side to the other and banging my brain to mush. So much pressure... But I could not pass up a decision like that! I took a deep breath and looked down at the picture in my hands, staring at everyone as they blankly stared back at me.

"...Xander." I looked back up at the confused face of Zeke, as he smiled at me out of both surprise and the aforementioned confusion. I shrugged. "I'd name myself XYZ, but then I'd not only sound pretentious but also like the main character of a book!" I laughed.

And Zeke laughed with me.

And we both laughed with the other.

-Vehemently yours,

XYZ.