Chapter 53: Relaxation
Hibiki felt like she was floating in space with her eyes, feeling relieved as she drifted between consciousness and unconsciousness. "Did I do good grandma?" Hibiki asked the void. As she spoke, she could swear she could feel someone hugging her from behind.
"Yes you did, that was some good thinking. A little crazy, but I do agree with the method." Symphia told her.
"Something you would have done?" Hibiki questioned softly.
"Something similar at the very least." Symphia said. Hibiki let out a quick smile as she let out a sigh of relief before she felt something tighten in her chest. "Have something to say?" Symphia asked.
"I… don't know if I'm ready for the next step. I know I'm finishing my gym challenge and am going to aim for the championship, but after that I don't know what I want to do." Hibiki responded after a moment of silence.
"That's reasonable, it's always intimidating after spending so long on this one journey. Hell, I felt the same way before I became Champion." Symphia told Hibiki.
"You did?" Hibiki questioned.
"Yeah, I remember just taking a good month to myself as I got everything in order after becoming Champion. It was a lot to take in and I had plenty of time till next year, so I just planned out a small vacation around the world." Hibiki mentioned.
"Made plenty of friends during that time?" Hibiki asked.
"That I did, some who I still talk with now." Symphia mentioned. There was a moment of silence between the two, before Hibiki felt Symphia's 'arms' let go of her.
"You're leaving?" Hibiki said in a sad voice.
"You know that I can't stay forever. It's honestly a miracle I managed to talk the 'god' of death into letting me see you this time. Still, I won't ever be away for long." Symphia told Hibiki.
"I know… and thank you for watching over me grandma." Hibiki told Symphia.
"You're welcome mi hija." Symphia said before fading away. Hibiki smiled as she slowly opened her eyes, taking a good bit to adjust as she was staring directly at a light overhead.
"Hibiki?" A voice quietly called out. Hibiki groaned as she looked around, seeing that she was in a hospital room hooked up to an IV drip and laying down in head, turning towards the voice to see Aria right beside her.
"Mom?" Hibiki weakly called out.
"Oh thank god, you're awake." Aria said in a sigh of relief.
"How long have I been out?" Hibiki questioned.
"Two days, thankfully not a long time, but you know how I am." Aria said with a sigh. Hibiki slowly nodded as she smiled, a moment of silence falling over the two of them as neither knew exactly how to continue. "Were you… talking with mom earlier? I heard you mumbling some things and kind of just assumed." Aria said, rubbing the back of her head.
"Yeah, at least I assume I was. Kind of hard to tell when you're floating between consciousness and unconsciousness." Hibiki responded with a smile.
"I will admit, I am kind of jealous that you managed to talk with her as much as you have. I know my powers aren't exactly the strongest, but I figured she would have done something to let me know." Aria said. Hibiki smiled and was going to say something before Aria held up a hand and put a chin to her head, suddenly remembering something. "Before you say anything else, I figured I should let you know about something." Aria commented, an awkward look on her face.
"WhaAAAAAA-" Hibiki said, squeaking for a moment. She felt the sensation of ice cold water being dunked on her as she quickly sat up and felt her heart pounding, feeling herself as she felt water being washed over her.
"That… that was what I was going to warn you about." Aria sighed, a small smile on her face as she suppressed a giggle. Hibiki took a moment to calm down as she shivered, feeling very cold from the sensation as she looked around to see no one else in the room.
"Who? What? Why?" Hibiki stammered out.
"Well you see, your sister and Melody were getting a bit impatient at waiting for you to wake up, so they might have made a plan that I was in on." Aria began to explain.
"Use a bucket of ice water on Melody, making me feel the same sensation?" Hibiki guessed, now feeling more awake.
"Yeah pretty much, I was just here to let them know if it worked." Aria responded.
"How long has Melody been awake?" Hibiki asked, shaking off the feeling.
"For about a day, she made the plan this morning." Aria commented. Hibiki went quiet, letting her emotions settle as she thought about how to respond.
"That… was devilish, but I respect the creativity of the idea. Still, why tho?" Hibiki said, the adrenaline wearing off.
"I figured it was a good enough way to teach you a lesson on making very reckless plans like the last one did." Aria commented.
"...Fair enough, that was a very stupid and risky plan that I did. I'm very happy that it worked out in the end though." Hibiki said, a smile on her face.
"Agreed, I may disagree with your plans, but I can't deny the results. Just promise to not make too many risky ones." Aria responded.
"Now that's something I can agree on, I've had enough of those plans for a while." Hibiki said, lying back down. Aria chuckled at that before smiling as she pat Hibiki on the head, looking up for a moment before turning to the medical equipment.
"I should go ask the doctor if you're ok to leave." Aria commented.
"Please, I don't want to be in here much longer. Though I imagine that I'm going to have to head to HQ for a talk." Hibiki said.
"Right on the money." Aria responded. Hibiki sighed, but nodded as Aria left the room to go find the doctor, leaving Hibiki alone with her thoughts. As she left, she took a deep breath and focused on the connection that she had with Melody, trying to see if she could communicate with her.
"Hello?" Hibiki called out in a somewhat annoyed tone.
"Oh good, you're awake." Melody responded, a light tone in her voice.
"You know, I did wake up before you had the water dumped on you, that didn't lessen the impact at all, especially when it's just the sensation." Hibiki commented.
"Well, at least you're awake." Melody said.
"True enough, how have you been doing?" Hibiki asked.
"Aside from the dull, aching pain from the battle that I still feel, honestly pretty all right." Melody told Hibiki, Hibiki noting a dull sensation all over her body.
"That's good to hear. I take it the rest of the team is with you and feeling the same?" Hibiki questioned.
"Yeah, we're all just relaxing at HQ waiting for you. …Please tell me we're going to stay still for a day?" Melody responded, a hint of desperation in her voice.
"Might make that two to be honest, it was a long day. I do want to get my adventure over with, but god I need some rest." Hibiki said, a hint of exhaustion in her voice.
"Thank Arceus." Melody commented, mentally breathing a sigh of relief. Hibiki giggled at that comment, taking a small sigh herself as she knew she would be relaxing for a bit.
"I'll be out of here soon, so hopefully we can talk in person today." Hibiki told Melody, already feeling a bit exhausted.
"Agreed, I'll see you here." Melody said, cutting the connection. Hibiki nodded as she started to sit up and make sure nothing else around her body was injured while she waited for Aria to come back.
Hibiki stretched as she and Aria walked towards the IPP HQ, feeling her bones and joints pop after two days of laying down in bed. "Ok, so I should get thai out of the way right now, do you or Looker have any punishments planned for me?" Hibiki asked, taking the fresh air.
"Honestly, the only thing I could bring myself to do is agree to help with that ice bucket prank. You've been through enough for now, I think you've earned the right to a bit of rest." Aria commented.
"Thank go- I mean thank you mom, I appreciate that." Hibiki said, catching herself with an awkward chuckle. Aria gave a sly smile as she gave Hibiki a light punch on the arm, the two walking into the IPP HQ.
"As for Looker, I doubt he has anything planned punishment wise considering some of the shenanigans he's been involved in." Aria told Hibiki.
"Oh he's been in his share of tomfoolery?" Hibiki questioned as they arrived in front of an elevator.
"At the very least, there are stories about what he's done, but no one has been able to find out if they're true or not. Most people do think there's some truth to the stories given his relatively lax mood." Aria explained. Hibiki nodded and was about to ask something else when the elevator doors opened and Looker himself was waiting there for them.
"Ah there you two are, I was wondering when you would get here." Looker said with a smile as he held the door open. Hibiki and Aria were both surprised into silence as they quickly stepped on, proceeding to ride the elevator up.
"...Have you just been in the elevator this whole time?" Hibiki asked, a bit surprised that he was waiting for them.
"No, I'm not a crazy person. The hospital just contacted me when you woke up and I just guessed what time you would be arriving here. I was just off by a few minutes it seems." Looker told Hibiki.
"That makes some sense." Aria responded.
"Yeah, I take it you were about to fill Hibiki in on what happened after she had passed out?" Looker asked.
"Just about to yeah. Thankfully, there isn't a lot to go over because it's fairly basic stuff." Aria began to say.
"I take it that this is stuff that happened after I took down Shika?" Hibiki questioned.
"That would be correct, thankfully it was fairly straight forward if a bit messy. The IPP backup arrived a good 10 minutes after Aria and her team arrived at Neo Cypher's HQ. They were in charge of helping to defeat and round up all the grunts as well as catching what Shadow Pokemon they could." Looker began.
"Thankfully for us, we picked some pretty stubborn trainers for the advanced team, so we were able to hold out for long enough for the back up to arrive. The rampaging Shadow Pokemon that you set loose were also a help, though they didn't discriminate between the IPP and Neo Cypher." Aria continued.
"I'm happy that little plan did work out, but I imagine that the clean up didn't go smoothly." Hibiki commented.
"Right, the Shadow Pokemon weren't exactly the easiest to catch with the few Snag machines we were able to get our hands on so a good 20% managed to escape out into the wild. Additionally, a good amount of grunts did also manage to escape, though we don't exactly know how much." Looker said.
"Yeah, and although we did manage to capture the leadership that was there, it looks Like Solion got away. I feel partially responsible for that one." Aria explained as she let out a heavy sigh.
"Like I said, you aren't at fault. Any good parent would want to go make sure their kid who made a completely reckless plan is ok." Looker told Aria.
"Again, sorry for not letting any of you in on it aside from Echo. I figured it was a good idea at the time, but god I could have used the help." Hibiki said with a heavy sigh.
"At least you admit it was stupid, that's really what matters. You're at least a bit better than Symphia in that regard." Looker mentioned.
"Oh lord, how reckless was she?" Hibiki asked.
"Definitely not as many dangerous plans as yours, at least to that scale, but she still was very reckless. Granted, she did get results, but the amount of years that I feel like I lost worrying about her is too high for my liking." Looker responded, a soft smile on his face. Hibiki nodded as the elevator opened and they all stepped out onto the 8th floor of the building, Looker taking a moment to straighten his jacket. "Before I forget, Echo and Melody are waiting for you on this floor, at the end of the hall on our right in the third room on your left." Looker told Hibiki.
"Thanks and sorry for any trouble that I caused." Hibiki said, rubbing the back of her head as she proceeded to walk down the hall. Looker was silent as she walked past him, remaining silent for a moment as he thought about something.
"Hey Hibiki." Looker spoke up.
"Yeah?" Hibiki responded as she stopped turned around.
"...I'll need your report on what happened during your end of all of this later. Come by my office whenever you have the time." Looker said in an exhausted tone.
"You got it boss." Hibiki answered with a small sigh, continuing her walk down the hall. Eventually, when Hibiki had turned the corner and was out of earshot, Looker let out a heavy sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Good on you for not immediately letting her know about your offer." Aria commented, a small smile on her face.
"What else am I supposed to do, just drop it on her out of nowhere while she still has a bit of her gym challenge to go? No, I do have a bit more tack than that." Looker responded.
"Fair enough I suppose, but your offer is basically her dream scenario. Being the new head of the IPP's Exploration Division is something she's talked to me about, especially after Symphia passed." Aria asked.
"True, but something tells me that she's found a new road for herself." Looker said, looking in the direction that Hibiki walked towards. Aria sighed at that, but smiled as she joined Looker in doing the same.
"You felt it too huh?" Aria questioned.
"Yeah, I'll make her the offer when she comes to give the report, see what she says." Looker said as he began to walk away.
"You were serious about that report?" Aria asked, cocking up her eyebrow.
"Of course I was, I might be kind but procedure is procedure and she might have picked up a few things on the way." Looker told Aria. Aria paused for a moment as she sighed before joining Looker, deciding to leave Hibiki and Echo to themselves.
As Hibiki walked to the door, she took a moment to breathe and paused as she felt pain all over her body. "Maybe it was a bit too quick to get out of the hospital." Hibiki thought to herself. She shook the feeling off before slapping herself softly and opening the door. When she did, she was tackled by a pair of small masses, knocking the wind out of her and almost falling over.
"Hibiki!" Melody said aloud as she and Viola hugged their trainer.
"Hey there you two, glad to see you're doing all right." Hibiki said, a hint of pain in her voice. Melody and Viola, hearing Hibiki's tone, quickly let go and rubbed the back of their heads out of embarrassment, before both getting headpats by Hibiki as she entered the room. The room was a fairly open and basic room, with a table against a wall of windows, a few chairs lined up against the side walls, and a large exercise mat on the floor that Echo was standing on.
"Ah there you are sis, I was wondering when you would show up." Echo said with a smile.
"Yeah it took a bit, you know how hospitals are." Hibiki responded, returning the smile.
"I can imagine considering we had to do the same. All in all, before we get to anything else, I'm just glad your plan worked even though it was batshit crazy." Echo told Hibiki, letting out an exhausted sigh.
"Thanks and don't worry, I think I've had my fill of crazy plans for a bit." Hibiki commented, a tired look in her eyes. The two were silent as they decided what to do, Melody and Viola floating over to them, before Hibiki sighed and opened her arms wide. "All right I can tell that you want to let off some steam, just go ahead and do it. Just be a bit gentle as I'm still not fully recovered." Hibiki said.
"Got it." Echo answered as she walked up to Hibiki. Taking a moment to pause, Echo quickly grabbed Hibiki's arm and flipped her on her stomach, landing on the mat with a soft thud. "Tap on the mat when the pain is too much for you." Echo told Hibiki. Hibiki gave a thumbs up as Echo walked over, grabbed Hibiki's legs, and crossed them over each other before squatting and pulling.
"When did you learn this?!" Hibiki said in pain, recognizing the move from the little wrestling she had watched.
"Watches a lot of wrestling videos and I practiced on Sigma, he's a good partner who didn't complain too much." Echo answered in a focused tone. Hibiki was about to say something when she cut herself off with a yelp of pain as Echo continued the hold on her legs, Melody and Viola simply watching as they figured not to get in the middle of a sibling 'punishment'. About a minute passed of this, Hibiki fighting through the pain she was feeling before it was too much and she rapidly slapped the mat, Echo quickly releasing the hold as Hibiki sighed.
"Better?" Hibiki asked in a very pained voice as she breathed.
"Better, be thankful I decided to actually let go, I think I could have held that for another minute or so if I wanted." Echo told Hibiki as she panted. Hibiki nodded as she turned over to her back and laid down for a moment before slowly sitting up, being helped by Melody and Viola who were on standby.
"Thank you both, how are you two doing by the way?" Hibiki questioned as she walked over to the chairs.
"We've been doing good, honestly I spent most of my time just catching up with Viola. It's been a bit since we last spoke after all." Melody said. Viola nodded as she hugged Melody, who returned the hug with a somewhat awkward smile as Hibiki sat down and Echo walked towards the two Meloetta.
"These two did bicker a bit, but they made up quickly. Honestly I'm happy that they're together again after a long time apart. Speaking of actually…" Echo said, reaching into her bag. Hibiki was quiet as Echo pulled out six Pokeballs in a case labeled "Hibiki's Team", before walking over and handing it to Hibiki. "I took them to the Center after everything was said and done." Echo told Hibiki.
"Thank you." Hibiki said as she got out the Pokeballs. She slowly took them all out, set Melody's and Viola's aside, and tossed the remaining ones into the air, calling out the rest of her team as she stood up. When they appeared, they each took a moment to get their bearings before seeing Hibiki and rushing over to her, Hibiki letting them surround and hug her, or nuzzle her in Venemy's case. "Glad to see you're all doing well and thank you all for going through with that crazy plan of mine." Hibiki told her team. They all gave understanding cries as Echo gave a smile, turning to look at Melody and Viola who both paused for a bit before floating over and joining the hugs.
"I'll leave you all to catch up and talk, I'll be outside." Echo said.
"Hey, before you go, what happened to Luna?" Hibiki questioned. Echo went quiet for a moment before getting out the Master Ball and showing it to Hibiki.
"I can tell you more later, but she is safe. That's all you need to know for now." Echo said with a sigh. Hibiki simply nodded before Echo left the room, leaving Hibiki and her team to themselves as Hibiki thought about something.
"...Hey Melody, mind if I ask you and Viola something?" Hibiki said aloud. The two Meloetta both looked at Hibiki, the rest of her team getting the hint and giving them some space.
"You want to talk about something?" Melody asked.
"It's just something that's been on my mind for a bit. Are you two still ok traveling with me?" Hibiki responded.
"Oh that's what this is about." Melody said with a sigh as she looked at Viola. Viola looked down for a moment as Hibiki sighed and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment.
"I know we made a promise when we started this whole adventure Melody, but I felt like asking considering Neo Cypher is mostly gone." Hibiki explained in a guilty tone. Melody and Viola paused as they thought about what to say before Melody floated over to Hibiki with a smile on her face.
"Yeah I do remember that and I do appreciate the consideration, but I made that promise and I'm sticking with you to the end. Besides, it would probably leave a bad taste in my mouth for the rest of my life if my partner lost without me there." Melody told Hibiki, landing on her left shoulder. Hibiki was silent for a moment, before she chuckled and smiled, reaching out her left fist to Melody.
"Then let's keep going to the very end, no matter what happens." Hibiki said as Melody fistbumped her. The rest of her team cheered in excitement as they reaffirmed their promise while Viola smiled, but was still lost in thought. "Just a reminder Viola, you don't have to go with us. I understand that the way I caught you was very… botched and rushed, yeah let's go with that, so don't feel like you have any obligation you have to stick with us." Hibiki told Viola. Viola was still quiet, remaining unsure of what to do until Melody hopped off of Hibiki's shoulder and floated over to her sister. After about a minute of talk between the two, Melody put a hand on Viola's shoulder to comfort her, Viola nodding and saying something that made Melody smile.
"She said she's willing to be released, but she's going to be traveling with us if she can." Melody told Hibiki.
"Really? Here I was thinking she would want to travel back home. Of course she can travel with us, but is there really any reason?" Hibiki mentioned.
"Honestly, she just wants to see how we battle and wants to spend time with me now that we're reunited." Melody said.
"That is all the reason I need. Give me a second Viola." Hibiki told Viola. Viola nodded as Hibiki walked over to the seats and grabbed the two Pokeballs, putting away Melody's and returning Viola to her ball before releasing her in a blue light. "There we go, you're now free to follow us without being attached to a trainer. Now keep in mind, you're going to have to stick to the shadows so you don't get caught by other trainers, but I think you'll be fine given that you've stayed out of sight for this long." Hibiki explained. Viola nodded and smiled before floating up and hugging Hibiki, who simply returned the hug as they gave cheers of joy.
"I'm thankful that you said yes because knowing her, she would have followed us anyway." Melody commented.
"I had a feeling she would. Now, just to let you all know, we are going to be taking a day and a half to rest, can we agree that we need some rest?" Hibiki questioned. Every one of her team members and Viola simply nodded in agreement as they all let out a sigh of exhaustion. "Okay good, now you all take a well deserved break. Melody, I'll leave you to take some time to talk with Viola." Hibiki told her team. They all gave approving nods as Melody and Viola floated beside Hibiki while she recalled her team, soon walking towards the door and opening it to find Echo leaning against the wall.
"Glad to see you got all of that sorted out." Echo said, a smile on her face.
"Did you hear all of that?" Hibiki asked.
"Only bits and pieces, but I did catch that you decided to let Viola follow us. Not sure how I feel about having another high-value companion with us, no offense Viola, but I feel like we can protect her." Echo commented. Viola pouted for a moment and Hibiki was going to say something when her stomach roared and rumbled, causing her to rub the back of her head in embarrassment. "Man you really haven't eaten have you? " Echo chuckled out.
"No, I kind of just came over here without thinking." Hibiki said.
"All right, let's go get you something to eat then." Echo told Hibiki, patting her on the back.
"Thanks." Hibiki muttered out.
"If you two don't mind, we'll hang around the building and just talk with each other." Melody told Hibiki. Hibiki gave a simple thumbs up as the two floated down a corridor and began to talk with each other, Hibiki and Echo proceeded to head back to the elevators to go eat some lunch.
Hibiki let out a happy sigh as she ate the last of her food, feeling very full as Echo looked on with a smile. "That stomach of yours was not lying huh?" Echo asked.
"Nope, being unconscious in the hospital is surprisingly exhausting if you can believe it." Hibiki commented, chuckling a bit.
"That much I can tell." Echo said, smiling at her sister's demeanor. The two kept talking for a bit as they waited for their receipt, paying it and heading out onto the city to just walk. "Man, this whole thing with Neo Cypher really is over huh?" Echo questioned, being careful to not say too much.
"Well, at least for now it is. You heard what Looker said right, about how Solion and some of the grunts escaped?" Hibiki responded.
"Yeah, that part is a bit upsetting, Plus the shadow Pokemon that managed to escape or we didn't manage to capture." Echo sighed, a hint of disappointment in her voice. Hibiki nodded silently as she thought about how to word her next question, when Echo put a hand on her shoulder as they kept walking. "Oh yeah, you ready to have that talk about Luna?" Echo asked.
"Of course." Hibiki said, ready to hear what Echo had to say. In response, Echo looked and round before putting her head next to Hibiki's, her voice dropping to whisper.
"Not here, it's something a bit more private." Echo told Hibiki, a hint of concern in her voice. Hibiki remained quiet and nodded, understanding what Echo had told her as she took the lead and began to lead Hibiki through the city. After a few minutes of walking, the two arrived at a fairly remote area with a few abandoned buildings. "Here is a good place." Echo said as she looked around.
"Ok, if you have to bring me to a remote part of town, then it's either something very important or you're not my sister." Hibiki commented. Echo simply chuckled at that as she walked up to an abandoned building and casually opened the door to it.
"Not the most surprising thing I've heard you say, but it is the former. Now come on, this is something I don't want to let out in the open given the circumstances." Echo told Hibiki. Hibiki froze for a moment before tensing up a tad as she walked forward into the building with Echo closing the door behind them. The room they were in was a simple lobby area, with pieces of the ceiling falling off, various windows broken with some light leaking through, and dim light coming from the barely operational lights in the room.
"All right, so I'm going to ask this now. Good news or bad news?" Hibiki asked as she turned to face Echo.
"Eh, honestly a bit of both. Just a warning… be ready for what might happen." Echo answered as she got out the Master Ball. Hibiki remained quiet as Echo paused and sighed before looking at the Master Ball and throwing it up into the air, releasing Luna into the middle of the room. As Luna was released she took a moment to take in the surroundings here eyes fell on Hibiki and immediately turned a bright red.
"Oh I see." Hibiki said as she got ready to dodge. As Luna was about to charge at Hibiki, Echo quickly dashed up and got between the two, halting Luna's attempt to charge as she stopped in her tracks, now focused on Echo.
"Easy… easy there Luna. She's not an enemy like you think, she's my sister and a friend. You do remember her, right?" Echo told Luna in a calm and caring tone. Luna glared at Echo for a few seconds before looking back at Hibiki, who gulped and took deep breaths as she put her hands up as a sign of peace.
"Can I…?" Hibiki questioned, feeling her heart beating in her chest.
"Just be gentle about it." Echo told Hibiki, a hint of concern in her voice. Hibiki nodded and slowly walked up to Luna, who held her sharp gaze on Hibiki as she approached. When she got close to her, Hibiki slowly lifted her hand up next to pet Luna, only for her to jerk her head away.
"It's ok, I'm not here to hurt you. It's me, Hibiki. You remember me... right?" Hibiki said in a comforting and uncertain voice. Luna paused for a moment before leaning back into Hibiki's hand, letting Hibiki slowly pet Luna's face and rub her neck. "There we go, old friend. Don't be afraid, you're safe now, you can't be hurt by them anymore." Hibiki told Luna in a soft voice. Luna's gaze slowly softened as her eyes turned back to normal, looking at Hibiki for a moment before tears started to stream down her face.
"Ok, the scary part is over." Echo sighed in relief.
"I take it this is part of just making sure the Luna we know is still in there?" Hibiki questioned in a more relaxed tone.
"That's the good news, she defiantly is in there and does at the very least vaguely remember us. Right Luna?" Echo responded. Luna gave an affirming and sad cry as she tilted her head down with a sad smile on her face.
"What do you mean by vaguely remembering us?" Hibiki asked in a concerned tone.
"Well… that's the complicated bad news. To keep it simple, she's gone through a more advanced process to make her a Shade like Skuld is." Echo told Hibiki.
"Oh god, please tell me that this is something we can fix." Hibiki said with a hint of hope in ehr voice.
"That is something we have to wait on. You see, as we were getting picked up at Neo Cypher's HQ and the clean up was happening, they managed to get some data off of Shika's computer." Echo began to explain.
"That thing still worked after the whole battle we had?" Hibiki inquired.
"Surprisingly, yes, though just barely. Anyway, over the past two days, Michael and Jovi have been looking through the data for any leads on how they made Shadow Pokemon, because it is different from what Michael recalls from his time against them. While searching through the files, we happened to actually figure out the exact process of how Shades are made. Long story short, they're exposed to altered or amplified memories that make them want to fall into a depressive slump before a sort of mind control is placed on them, locking away any previously good memories they had." Echo continued. Hibiki paused as she absorbed that information, thinking back to when she was in Melody's mind and the memories she saw.
"It might be possible that they tried to do something similar to Melody, but she did apparently resist or it didn't work as intended." Hibiki commented.
"That makes sense since there was a note that some test subjects with high mental capabilities or strong wills seemed to resist. Luna was also a special case given that she was one of the first test subjects for this new procedure. My guess is that a side effect is dulling her actual memories, though not to the point of overwriting them" Echo noted. Hibiki nodded as she kept comforting Luna, who seemed to blankly stare into the distance as they were talking as if trying to remember what was real and what wasn't.
"Well… at least she's doing all right." Hibiki said in a sad tone. Echo nodded as she walked up and pet Luna, who took a moment to look between the two sisters and smiled.
"Thankfully, she is going to be able to recover. I've just decided to take the long route to make sure that she's ok around us and others. Michael did say that he could modify the Shadow Restoration system he has, but I felt safer keeping it personal." Echo told Hibiki. Hibiki nodded with a smile on her face as she sighed and thought about something that was gnawing at her, taking a few steps back from Luna. "You have something you want to talk about?" Echo asked.
"I… don't know to be honest. My mind is still racing from everything, but I just feel unsure about things." Hibiki responded in a somewhat lost voice.
"A lot making you doubt this journey?" Echo questioned.
"Thankfully no, I'm actually pretty happy with how the journey has gone. It's more just that I don't know if I want to be champion anymore." Hibiki said, glancing at the floor with a sad smile.
"Oh? Miss "I'm going to be the best" is feeling unsure?" Echo said, in a joking yet understanding tone.
"Wild I know, but it's just that I don't really know after everything that happened two days ago. I've had some time to think about things and I might still be processing stuff, but I just don't feel like I'm in the best head space." Hibiki told Echo. Echo nodded as she thought about what to say as Luna floated up to Hibiki and nuzzled her, making Hibiki smile.
"Truth be told, I think I'm feeling a similar way." Echo said.
"Really?" Hibiki questioned.
"Honestly, I think I'm just going for champion to see if I can at this point." Echo admitted while rubbing the back of her head.
"Huh… Hey Echo, did you ever feel like I was strong-arming you into following me on this adventure?" Hibiki asked curiously. Echo immediately walked up to Hibiki and pulled her into a hug, putting a hand on the back of her head.
"Of course not, I always wanted to stick by you throughout this. Even if this did end up going very differently than what I was thinking about, I still enjoyed all of this." Echo told Hibiki in a caring voice. Hibiki paused for a second before returning the hug, a renewed smile on her face.
"Thank you, I needed to hear that." Hibiki said in a cracked voice. Echo simply nodded as Luna put her head between the two sisters hugging the Pokemon and feeling refreshed. After a few seconds, Hibiki broke the hug and pulled out her phone to check what time it was as Echo returned Luna to her Pokeball. "I should head back to base, Looker is going to be expecting a report from me." Hibiki sighed.
"Oh yeah, I should have figured he would ask you to do that considering, you know…" Echo responded, gesturing towards Hibiki.
"Yep, I'll talk to you later then sis. Also we're leaving tomorrow afternoon at the earliest, tomorrow at the latest." Hibiki told Echo. Echo gave a quick thumbs-up as Hibiki exited the building and Echo followed, the two walking back to the IPP Headquarters while talking along the way.