Chapter 55: Back on the Road
The next afternoon…
Hibiki let out a sigh of relief as she stretched in her room as she finished packing her stuff and made sure that she had everything in order, Melody and Viola watching from the side. "You're ready to head out already?" Melody asked, Viola just humming on the side.
"Eh, I know we're not leaving til Cherry and Sigma are done, but I figure being ready now is a good idea. Also, knowing Echo she's probably already ready as well." Hibiki responded. As if on cue, there was a knock at the door as Hibiki smiled and walked over to open it, revealing that Echo was standing outside.
"Hey, just wanted to check if you were ready to go." Echo told Hibiki.
"Yep, just finished packing up. We still have to wait for Cherry and Sigma?" Hibiki questioned.
"Sadly yes, they took a bit of the work we were supposed to do. Not that I don't appreciate them, I'm still admittedly hurting a bit from the Neo Cypher Raid, it does suck. From what Sigma told me, they should be done in about half an hour at best." Echo answered. Hibiki nodded as she crossed her arms and tapped her foot on the ground, thinking about what to do.
"Want to go hang out with Michael and Jovi before we go?" Hibiki asked.
"Sure, that sounds like a good idea. By the way, did you ever give Michael that shadow Ho-oh?" Echo responded. Hibiki paused for a moment before going over to her phone and tapping on it to check her PC Box, taking a deep breath and letting out a disappointed sigh. "And that tells me everything I need to know." Echo commented.
"Look, I was very tired yesterday." Hibiki retorted.
"Fair enough, you literally woke up and still did like a million things despite just coming out of the hospital." Echo said.
"Anyway, let's get going." Hibiki said. Echo nodded as the two sisters, along with Melody and Viola, headed to the science division of the IPP Headquarters. "Oh yeah, what's the plan when we get out of here?" Hibiki asked.
"Honestly I kind of just want to fly to the Blizzard Terra Dome, we've done enough walking already and god I kind of just want to avoid people." Echo responded.
"Yeah… I get that and I'm honestly of the same mind right now." Hibiki told Echo.
"By the way, I heard that agents were sent out to look for any remaining Neo Cypher members that could be hiding." Echo told Hibiki.
"That is good to hear and it is best to air on the side of caution." Hibiki mentioned.
"Considering that side of caution are stragglers from a group dedicated to making Pokemon killing machines, I think they'll be fine. Apparently, they've been assigned some of the Snag Machines that we managed to get from the grunts just in case the stragglers have any Shadow Pokemon." Echo explained.
"That's good, the fewer of those out in the world, the better." Hibiki said. The others all nodded in agreement as the arrived at the Science Division, seeing Micahel stretching as he was about to head into the lab before seeing them.
"Oh, hey there you all. I thought you would have left by now." Michel commented.
"Cherry and Sigma are still working, so we're just waiting for them. Also, I forgot to bring you the Ho-oh I caught from Shika." Hibiki said as she showed the Shadow Ho-oh on her phone.
"Right, I did ask you for that. I honestly forgot about it myself as it's been a hectic few days just digging through the data that we recovered and getting a Shadow Purification System set up here." Michael told Hibiki.
"That's the device you used to purify the Shadow Lugia you had told us about right?" Echo questioned.
"Correct, having it here is going to be better in the long run, just in case more Shadow Pokemon pop up. You never know, considering there's still a few stragglers that escaped the base." Michael answered.
"Yeah… we'll definitely have to deal with that if we ever find out where Solion fled to." Hibiki commented as she connected to her PC and got out Ho-oh's Ultra Ball. Micheal nodded as Hibiki held out the Ultra Ball, which he took and looked at for a moment, letting out a heavy sigh as he put it away.
"I don't think I ever said this to you two, but I'm sorry that I kind of relied on you to take care of Neo Cypher. Yeah I know I have basically nothing to apologize for, I just wanted to say it just in case." Michael told the twins, a humble tone in his voice. Hibiki was a bit taken aback by the apology, but quickly smiled and put a hand on his shoulder with Echo doing the same.
"Apology accepted and don't worry, we were more than happy to help." Echo responded in a comforting tone. Michael nodded as he smiled sadly, looking over at the two Meloetta floating behind Hibiki who nodded and gave approving smiles, reminding Michel of something.
"Oh right, I'm actually happy that you came by before leaving. We actually managed to find out a bit about those Unity moves that you described to me." Michael mentioned as he looked at Melody and Hibiki.
"You did? Anything I should know before I attempt to use them?" Hibiki asked, a bit enthusiastic about the news.
"Well… it's not that you can't use them, it's more that they won't be that useful." Michael told Hibiki.
"...What?" Hibiki questioned, clear confusion on her face,
"Ok, so first thing to keep in mind, we've only had like two and a half days of testing because Melody is the only Pokemon that knows these moves so far. Second, what I mean when I say they aren't that useful is that they're basically just normal moves when up against regular Pokemon. Sure you get their effects, but no real advantage against anything you would regularly encounter." Michel explained.
"Ah… that makes sense." Hibiki said as she and Melody nodded.
"One last thing that is entirely separate from that, do you really want to paint a large target on your back by showing that to whoever will be watching the League Tourney and Championship Matches?" Michael added. Hibiki stayed silent as she just nodded, knowing that Michael had a point with Melody also nodding in agreement.
"I know it sucks to not be able to use something you just found out you had, but try to keep it hidden til after we finish with the league." Echo told Hibiki. Hibiki looked at Echo for a moment, judging her a little bit before simply nodding and smiling. "And before you say anything, yes I know I'm a hypocrite with me wanting to use Luna." Echo commented with a sigh.
"Hey you said it, not me. Plus, there is an actual reason you should use her, just be careful that she doesn't go berserk." Hibiki commented.
"Yeah I know… god I know." Echo said. Michael nodded in understanding, recalling all the times he had to make sure his Shadow Pokemon didn't go berserk, as he pat Echo on the back.
"All I ask is that you be careful, we really don't want people to be getting hurt." Michael cautioned in an understanding tone.
"Got it." Echo answered dryly. Michael and Hibiki smiled at that, Hibiki moving over to give Echo a hug of reassurance. "Oh, is Jovi around?" Echo questioned curiously.
"No, she's taking a 'nap' right now on account of 'working too hard', at least according to her." Michael responded, rolling his eyes a bit.
"Yeah that sounds about right knowing her. I swear, staying focused is something she can never do." Echo commented, chuckling a bit. The two chatted for a bit as Hibiki walked up to Melody and Viola, who were both just floating there.
"Well, at least we learned about those moves. Probably it is also best that we keep the usage of that special form of yours." Hibiki mentioned.
"A shame after we just unlocked it, but it's probably for the best. I don't feel like being hunted down again." Melody commented as she let out a sigh of exhaustion.
"Speaking of, keep yourself to the shadows whenever possible Viola." Hibiki said. Viola nodded, not exactly wanting to go through what her sister did for the past month, as Hibiki's phone vibrated. She grabbed it and smiled as she saw that she got a text from Cherry that simply said 'we're done, going to wait in the lobby. "Hey Echo, they're ready." Hibiki called out.
"Got it, sorry about the interruption Mr. Michael." Echo told Michael.
"Please, just Michael is fine and don't worry about it, I know you're on a journey." Michael rescinded. Echo bowed as she and Hibiki waved goodbye to Michael, heading back to their rooms to grab their stuff so they could head out.
An hour later…
The group trekked through the cold of the Blizzard Dome, which had a clear day with some snow falling, as they left Frost Town. "So, mind if I ask you all a question?" Sigma chimed in, shivering a bit as he had decided to brave the cold with his regular clothes.
"What is it?" Hibiki asked curiously.
"Well since you all know the region and at least Cherry has been to these further towns, why couldn't we just fly to the last gym?" Sigma questioned.
"Because we want to walk there." Echo answered, a smile on her face.
"Fair enough, I don't know why I expected a different answer." Sigma said.
"As much as I might hate it, walking is just nice in general. Granted, I do think we should have at least gotten to the other side of the Blizzard Dome, but that's not up to me." Cherry commented, letting out a small sigh.
"We just wanted to go through to make sure that we both actually had gotten the badge." Hibiki commented.
"But… you both… you know what nevermind." Sigma said before stopping himself. Echo and Hibiki both chuckled as Cherry gave Simga a pat on the back. "Speaking of, you two both do have seven badges right?" Sigma questioned.
"I believe we do, though I don't know if you did fight out mom Echo." Hibiki responded as she looked at her sister.
"Where do you think I went after we finished talking yesterday?" Echo answered with a smile on her face.
"Nice, did she give you a hard time?" Hibiki asked.
"It went pretty well all things considered, having a legendary Psychic Pokemon does tend to melt through Poison types pretty easily." Echo said.
"Oh, how did she react to fighting Luna?" Sigma inquired.
"Well, she brought out her best team and was smiling the whole time… at least until Luna almost went berserk. The two of us did manage to calm her down, but it was a close one." Echo said, rubbing the back of her head.
"That's good at least." Hibiki told Echo with a sigh. As Cherry was about to chime in, she looked up to see that they were about to reach the exit of the Blizzard Dome.
"Oh thank god, some warmth." Sigma said as he sprinted forward. Echo chuckled at the dashing Sigma as he quickly opened the door and went inside, the others following soon after.
"By the way, I've been meaning to ask. Have you two started dating yet?" Hibiki asked casually, looking at Echo. Echo stopped and almost fell to the floor, but was quickly caught by Sigma, who just looked at Echo for a moment as he blushed. Hibiki simply smiled at the interaction as Echo stood and rubbed the back of her head awkwardly.
"I mean… that's not…" Echo stuttered out.
"She means to say not yet. Well, we haven't gone out on one yet, mainly because we haven't had the time." Sigma finished.
"But you are dating." Hibiki chimed in with a smile.
"...Yes." Echo and Sigma simultaneously said. Hibiki chuckled before walking up and giving the two of them a hug, which they were both surprised by before they returned the hug.
"You know, I think I can safely say that I didn't see this coming." Cherry commented.
"I could say the same thing. To think this all started after I fought you all through the forest that day." Sigma said.
"God that feels like a few years ago, but it's only been a few weeks since that day." Echo commented.
"Time really does fly by when you're dealing with a psychotic team and having a regular Pokemon journey." Sigma chuckled. Everyone simply nodded as the girls all went to get changed out of their winter clothes. "Oh yeah, are you ok Viola?" Sigma asked his shadow. From the shadow emerged a somewhat shivering Viola, who put on a tough face as she gave an approving nod before sneezing. "Looks like the two of us decided to do the same thing, even with similar results." Sigma told Viola. Viola and Sigma both chuckled as Viola sat by Sigma to warm up, Hibiki coming out soon after.
"Thanks for offering to let Viola use your shadow Simga and sorry for the ask." Hibiki said as she sat next to Viola and wrapped a scarf around her neck.
"Eh, it's fine and I do appreciate the company. Getting used to the feeling of someone always before around me is a thing, but I can deal with it for a bit." Sigma mentioned, patting Viola on the head. Viola gave a grateful cry, making the two trainers smile as Echo and Cherry walked out and were ready to go.
"Ok, whenever you two are ready." Cherry said.
"Just something that I was curious about, who exactly is the last gym leader? I think you mentioned them before, but their name honestly escapes me." Sigma questioned curiously.
"That would be Crescendo, or Cres as he likes to go by. He is Adagio's father and a specialty of… well that's not exactly something we know." Hibiki explained.
"Like he doesn't tell anyone?" Sigma inquired.
"No, he just likes to change up what types he uses at his gym, which our league is totally fine with by the way. He does like to keep people on their toes for the last gym and he absolutely does not hold back." Echo elaborated.
"That actually sounds really cool." Sigma commented, his curiosity piqued by the idea.
"It's honestly a really cool thing to have at the end of an adventure. A bit of a pain in the ass if you're not prepared, at least from what I've heard, but it's very refreshing. Honestly, I get why the 8 set gyms are nice, just less logistics, but I really like this." Hibiki said.
"Let's see you say that after the battle." Cherry mentioned.
"Yeah… we'll see." Hibiki said, letting out a shape sigh. As the group started to chat, the door leading out of the dome opened, prompting Viola to quickly hide in the shadows, and Adagio walked in with a smile on her face.
"Ah there you all are. How are the saviors of the region doing?" Adagio questioned.
"Adagio!" Hibiki and Echo said as they ran over and hugged their friend. Adagio smiled and accepted the hug with open arms, smiling as she embraced the two trainers while Sigma and Cherry smiled at the sight.
"Were you waiting for a long time, Adagio?" Cherry questioned.
"Not really, only about half an hour or so. I did come when I heard you were heading out and knowing you all, well the two sisters anyway, it would take a bit so I've just been hanging around and making sure any trainers that passed through were ok." Adagio explained.
"Considering how cold it can be in there, that makes sense. Also, what do you mean by knowing us?" Hibiki questioned.
"Hibiki, you know exactly what she means." Echo sighed as they broke the hug.
"I know… trust me I know. I'm trying to get better at not being slow and taking my time, but I just can't help it. I love seeing the world and how Pokemon interact with it." Hibiki exclaimed, holding a hand to her chest as she smiled. Adagio nodded, understanding where Hibiki was coming from and thinking about something that Looker had mentioned to her, before quietly turning around.
"Well come on then, it's going to be dinner time by the time we get to Destiny Village and I want to hear the whole story of how you took down Neo Cypher." Adagio told the group. They all nodded and exited the waiting room to head towards Destiny Village.
Over the next hour or so, the group was simply chatting and discussing the events of the Neo Cypher raid, Adagio listening intently to every detail she heard. "Thank god that is dealt with, I'm sorry I was not able to help during that." Adagio told Hibiki.
"It's fine Adagio, I know you have your own stuff to deal with the League almost starting up." Hibiki mentioned.
"Yeah, it has been a bit hectic. It's a good thing you did manage to actually catch Shinka though, it would have sucked if she managed to escape." Adagio commented.
"I'm glad I had enough strength left in me to knock her out." Echo said, chuckling a bit. Hibiki nodded as she thought about possible situations that might have happened if Shika did manage to escape, not liking any of them in the slightest.
"Speaking of the League, how has that been going?" Cherry questioned.
"Honestly it's been going fairly smoothly, we recently just started to get people that are finishing their Gym Challenge. I think we have like four or five other trainers that have already arrived at the plateau." Adagio recalled.
"Damn they're already there? Also that seems like a lower amount than I was expecting." Sigma commented.
"Yeah there has been a bit of a lower turn out this year apparently, which is a bit disappointing. Now granted, apparently from what Looker has told me, some of the participants in the challenge were undercover Neo Cypher agents." Adagio began to explain.
"Oh for the love of- could they just not do this?" Hibiki exclaimed, a bit peeved about that information.
"Trust me, I'm not a fan of it either, but it happened and we kind of have to deal with it. That isn't the main reason for the lack of participants though, remember that people have been getting sick recently." Adagio said.
"Right, I totally forgot about that. That would explain why I haven't seen a lot of trainers walking about." Echo mentioned.
"Thankfully a vaccine was created and is being distributed, just need time for people to take it." Cherry told Echo.
"I'm surprised none of us got sick this whole journey." Hibiki said.
"True enough, thank god we didn't have to deal with Neo Cypher while being sick." Echo commented. Adagio giggled at that as she thought about a few league related things as Destiny Village came into view. The village was fairly quaint, only home to a Pokemon center, a few houses, a large park off to the eastern edge of the village, and the Destiny Pokemon gym. "Huh, it feels a bit like home looking at it." Echo said, a small smile on her face.
"That 's about the reaction I was expecting and I'm not surprised. Destiny Village was always a small town even when the region started to expand." Adagio explained.
"Any reason why other than just keeping it small?" Sigma questioned.
"Honestly, that's really the only reason. The IPP respected that reason and made both this place as well as Victory Village, the village that leads to Champion's Peak, exempt from any building plans unless the local leader requested it." Adagio finished.
"That has always been a bit weird to me, but I also don't complain because I like the smaller towns." Cherry commented.
"A sentiment that I share, as cool as Alaria City is, these smaller towns are just nice to hang out in." Sigma mentioned. Hibiki and Echo both smiled knowingly as they entered the village, a feeling of familiarity washing over them as they were reminded of home. "You two want to take on the gym now?" Sigma asked.
"Nah, I'm fine waiting til tomorrow honestly." Hibiki said.
"Same here. I know we're close to the end, but I kind of just want to shake off some nerves personally." Echo added.
"Ok, then I take it that food is the first thing on your mind?" Cherry questioned with a smile. Before either of them could respond, both of their stomachs growled as they looked away, a chuckle leaving Adagio's lips.
"Let it be my treat then, I happen to know of a nice little restaurant in town." Adagio told the group. They all nodded and followed Adagio over to the restaurant, taking in the sights of the people and Pokemon in town.
"Oh yeah, I've been meaning to ask even if I have before, and the answer is kind of obvious, that large floating platform is where the League is right? Champion's Peak I believe you called it?" Sigma asked, motioning to the mentioned platform.
"That would be correct." Adagio answered
"Why put it up there? Wouldn't it be safer and simpler to have it on the ground?" Sigma questioned. Adagio was silent for a moment, debating on how to answer for a moment, the other three simply smiling at the gesture, before shaking her head and sighing. "Was I supposed to ask that?" Sigma asked awkwardly.
"No, it's fine and you can ask. It's just that there really is no other reason than a display of conquering the EM Field around the region. …An ironic feat that was considering The Surge happened." Adagio sighed, mostly out of annoyance. Sigma mentally hit himself as he looked down and pinched his nose, getting a reassuring pat on the back from Echo. "Sorry, it's just sometimes other people's ego do annoy me." Adagio told Sigma.
"Trust me, I get the same way at times. Speaking of, how did that thing get fixed after The Surge anyway?" Sigma said.
"A lot of resources and investing in new engines from what I understand. Of course, the engineers did make sure to make it more resistant to the random flare ups of the field and it's been safe ever since." Cherry mentioned.
"Thankfully, I'm just thankful no one needs to go through that again. One crash was enough for us and we're doing everything we can to prevent that." Adagio said. Sigma nodded, looking over to Hibiki and Echo, who were giving silent and sad smiles as they looked at the floating city. As in on cue, their stomach growled again, a bit louder, as they just covered their faces and blushed.
"The twin connection is strong with you two when you're hungry." Sigma mentioned.
"Quiet you." Hibiki and Echo said simultaneously, causing them both to look at each other. Cherry giggled at that as they eventually arrived at the restaurant Adagio was talking about, a small place called Delibird Menagerie, sat down at a table, and waited to be served. As they waited, someone else walked up to their table and gave Adagio a tap on the shoulder, making her turn and give a wide smile. Before her stood a fairly tall man with graying orange hair, purple eyes, wearing a simple gray shirt with an orange suit, orange jeans, and black shoes
"Dad!" Adagio said as she stood up and hugged her father.
"I figured that you would eventually be around my girl, how has it been going?" Cres told his daughter, returning the hug.
"Hello ." Hibiki called out.
"Ah, Hibiki and Echo, a pleasure to see you finally made it to this village of ours." Cres responded, looking at the sisters.
"Yeah, we had to take care of some things before we got here, but we decided we should probably get to challenging you." Echo commented.
"Leaving the old man for last out of respect I see. I must say I'm touched and honored especially given what I've heard through the rumor mill." Cres said. Sigma looked a little worried at that comment, but a hand on his shoulder, belonging to Cherry, calmed him down enough. "Miss Cherry, always a pleasure to see you. And you must be Sigma, Aria has told me several good things about you." Cres spoke.
"Really? That's good to know." Sigma responded, nodding his head a tad.
"Good to know that mom has taken a liking to you." Echo said. Sigma nodded and was going to say something, before Cres' stomach growled loudly, causing him to rub it and and chuckle in embarrassment.
"Apologies, I've been a bit busy at the gym with last minute challengers, I haven't had a chance to eat dinner yet. Do you mind if I join you all?" Cres asked. Adagio sighed as she pinched her nose, everyone else chuckling as they offered a free seat to Cres, who gladly took it and began to talk with everyone there.
"So I take it that about 20 trainers have faced you today?" Cherry questioned.
"27 to be exact, some I faced in double battles." Cres answered
"God, that is a lot of trainers this late in the challenge. I know it's active for the whole year, but this is the main time when people come out. I didn't think that many would have waited til this late." Echo commented.
"Yeah, it seems people have been getting better and blitzing through. Granted, not all of them have been successful and have gone off to rethink strategies." Cres elaborated.
"Must have sent them packing." Sigma commented.
"Some were a bit easier than I intended, some put up a fight, but yes I did." Cres said with a smile.
"You wouldn't happen to be kind enough to tell us what type you're specializing in this year, would you?" Hibiki questioned. Cres simply chuckled at that and shook his head no, Hibiki giving a shrug as she figured it was worth a shot.
"Nice try at least." Sigma told Hibiki, a reassuring smile on his face. Hibiki nodded with a smile as their waiter came and took their orders. After about an hour of eating and more chatting, the group all waited for their bill so they could pay, Adagio offering to pay for the whole thing.
"Man, this is a nice place Adagio. Thanks for taking us here." Hibiki said as she patted her stomach.
"No problem, I've been meaning to come here before the tourney started up. I'm glad I was able to do so with friends and family." Adagio responded.
"I agree and it was nice to actually talk with you two. It has been a while since I visited your house and I'll admit, I have been a bit worried for you two ever since this journey of yours started." Cres told Hibiki and Echo.
"You were worried for us?" Echo asked.
"Yes, I was, mainly because I wasn't sure you could handle what was out there, but apparently I was worried about nothing." Cres said with a chuckle.
"It definitely was a bit touch and go at some points, but we managed to get here mostly unscathed." Hibiki said.
"From what I've heard of the IPP reports, that is definitely an understatement. You have done a good thing for the world." Cres mentioned. Hibiki's group nodded as the bill came and Adagio paid for them, everyone getting ready to leave soon after. "Well, it was nice talking with you all, but I should be heading back to the gym. I look forward to facing you two tomorrow." Cres said as he turned to leave.
"Mind if I join? I was asked to check up on gym progress anyway." Adagio told Cres.
"Of course you can, my dear daughter." Cres responded. Adagio smiled as the two waved goodbye and left the restaurant, leaving the others to themselves as they left as well, thinking about what to do.
"I want to get some rest and think about strategies for tomorrow, if the rest of you are fine with that." Hibiki suggested.
"Same here, doubly so for me because I need to figure out how I'm going to command Luna effectively." Echo commented.
"In that case, let's just head to the Pokemon center. Probably the best place we can rest and you two can head out of town later to train." Sigma told the two. They both nodded as the group walked towards the Pokemon Center, Hibiki thinking about her grandmother and some thoughts of her own.
Later that night…
Hibiki and Echo were outside of town as they trained with their teams, not exactly wanting the public to immediately know that they had Shade and Luna just yet. They both had their whole teams out and were going over strategies they could do, Echo being careful with explaining things to Luna as she wasn't sure what would trigger Reverse Mode. "Man, it really is happening huh?" Echo asked.
"Yep, I'm honestly surprised that we got here mostly in one piece." Hibiki mentioned, chuckling a bit.
"Agreed, that plan of yours was a thing." Echo responded.
"I said I'm sorry and that I'll do anything for you." Hibiki told Echo.
'I know, just hammering the point home." Echo said with a smug grin. Hibiki sighed, but smiled as they continued with their training, Hibiki managing to get a grasp of what her team had and what she lacked while Echo was able to make sure Luna wouldn't go on an immediate anger path. As they put their teams away, Echo turned to Hibiki with a pleased smile on her face. "I'm glad we decided to do this, it's been a bit since we had a chance to hang out in relative peace." Echo told Hibiki.
"Yeah… same here." Hibiki said, a hint of hesitation in her voice.
"Hibiki?" Echo called out, catching that tone.
"It's nothing, just thinking about things." Hibiki answered.
"I take it that this is about that offer from Looker?" Echo questioned.
"Ok, who told you?" Hibiki said, a tad annoyed about that question.
"Cherry did, but I had a feeling it was something big if Looker was going to ask you personally. He did give me one as well, but I want to hear what you got offered first." Echo told Hibiki.
"That's a fair enough deal. Well, I don't know what he offered you, but he offered me a chance to be the head of a division at the IPP, the same one that grandma was a part of." Hibiki explained.
"Oh…oh." Echo said, realizing why Hibiki was a bit tense.
"Yeah, it's a pretty big thing to ask in my opinion. I'm very honored, don't get me wrong, but it is a lot to put on someone who just woke up after beating a very dangerous organization." Hibiki ranted, obviously a bit stressed..
"...If it makes you feel any better, Looker did offer me a position in the same branch, though he didn't mention that you would be the new head of the division." Echo told Hibiki, putting a hand on her shoulder. Hibiki sighed as she tapped her foot, feeling a bit of the stress get lifted off of her shoulders.
"That does actually, though there is more on my mind than just that." Hibiki mentioned.
"I take it that this is about what we talked about back in town?" Echo inquired.
"Yeah it is, just been on my mind and making me doubt myself a bit." Hibiki responded with a heavy sigh.
"Judging by that tone, I think it's more than a bit." Echo chuckled. Hibiki laughed a bit too as she took a moment to sit on the grass and look at the sky.
"Do you think I deserve to be called Symphia's granddaughter?" Hibiki asked
"Oh for the love of- that's what this is all about?!" Echo exclaimed.
"I know it's dumb and I probably already know the answer, but just humor me and at least listen." Hibiki said. Echo was silent as she sighed before shrugging and sitting next to Hibiki, waiting for her to continue. "Thank you and sorry about this. It's just… I've been having a lot of doubts about myself if you couldn't tell and I want to come clean about my feelings to someone." Hibiki apologized in a soft voice.
"At least you're honest about it." Echo teased in a caring tone.
"True, but you also know I'm not the best at bottling up feelings, so I figured you knew something was up." Hibiki responded.
"Correct on that part, now what have you been feeling? Like the weight of the world was on your shoulders ever since we met Neo Cypher?" Echo questioned.
"I did, but then we took care of them and god it felt so good to have that lifted for the most part. Though, that hasn't been the only thing that's been eating away at me." Hibiki said.
"Doubt?" Echo inquired.
"More the fear of not being able to live up to the standards people might have of me because I'm Symphia's granddaughter." Hibiki responded.
"That is something I completely understand because I would be lying if I said I didn't feel that too." Echo told Hibiki.
"Yeah I figured you felt similarly, at least to a point." Hibiki commented, a smile on her face.
"Sorry about not telling you, but I wasn't exactly sure how you would feel if I did and I know you like to worry about everything." Echo responded.
"True, but just a curious question, do you think I'm crazy for feeling the way I feel?" Hibiki asked.
"No of course not, it's ok to have those thoughts. I take it that they just started to overwhelm you?" Echo responded.
"Yeah… just a lot of thinking and getting overwhelmed by my thoughts. You know, just the usual." Hibiki said.
"Understandable, I would be lying if I said that I haven't felt the same before. Did talking about it help at all?" Echo told Hibiki.
"At least a bit, I don't think I'll fully be able to shake the feeling, but I can manage as is." Hibiki said.
"That's good to hear. Don't want you to worry too much before we head to the league." Echo reassured, a smile on her face. Hibiki returned the smile as they stared up at the twinkling stars, occasionally seeing a few Bird pokemon flying to head to sleep.
"So, are you thinking about accepting that offer?" Hibiki questioned.
"I mean, it certainly is tempting, especially if you accept, but I like it here at home. Nothing against wanting to restart the division mind you, I just don't think it's something that I want to do myself." Echo responded.
"I totally understand that, as I'm kind of feeling the same way as you. Granted, part of my hesitation is the concept of actually being the head of the division, which feels like it would just be a lot to deal with." Hibiki mentioned, putting a hand to her head at the thought of that.
"Oh I totally get that, it does not sound like an enticing prospect. Still, it could be a big opportunity for you." Echo told Hibiki.
"Yeah, I definitely will have to think about it. My answer will probably be different if I become champion." Hibiki answered.
"God we really are almost there huh?" Echo said, sighing as she laid down on her back.
"Just this gym and then it's off to wait for the last of the trainers at Champion's Peak." Hibiki responded.
"Wild to think we've come this far. Though, I would totally be fine not being champion considering what we've done." Echo mentioned.
"Agreed, now let's get back and get some rest. We're going to have a busy day tomorrow." Hibiki told Echo. Echo nodded as the two stood up from the grass, bushed themselves off, and headed back to the Pokemon Center so they could sleep.