Barry had refused to leave Niss' side for more than a few minutes at a time, no matter how much Metchi or Johanna tried to coax him into going back to his hospital room to rest. The doctors had said he wasn't injured enough to need a bed, so there was nothing they could do. He sat on a dingy plastic chair next to Niss' bed and looked over the unconscious girl, ever so often grasping her pale hand or moving a loose tuft of hair off her sleeping face.

Niss lay across the bed, her body mostly hidden under blankets, what little could be seen of her arms and chest covered in gauze and bandages under her nightgown. An IV line connected her left arm to a bag full of saline solution. Another smaller bag connected through a bifurcation in the small tube, mixing sedatives and painkillers into the saline solution every few hours. Necessary, the doctors had called it. Niss had only woken up once ever since she'd first lost consciousness, but was in so much pain and discomfort that the doctors had to put her under again until the painkillers took effect, and her wounds closed at least somewhat.

He had felt that pain, of course. Mesprit's power didn't give him the freedom of choosing, not in the emotional state he was in. It was, without question, the worst pain he had ever experienced. Somehow, the knowledge that Niss was going through the same was worse than the actual pain.

He figured guilt played into it in some way.

Johanna, Metchi and Fantina were there most of the time too, but left occasionally for an hour or so. Fantina to speak with Lucian or check up on the other Gym leaders. Johanna to visit Shadi's room, as restricted and filled with Association security members as it was. And Metchi…

Actually, he wasn't sure. Metchi had only left once, called by one of the nurses and led down the corridor. When she came back, Barry picked up on her emotions without meaning to, a mix of bitterness and determination, though why he couldn't tell. He didn't ask her about it, and she didn't say. They'd been looking over Niss ever since, deep in silence. Conversations had been tried, but didn't last for more than a few seconds before one of them ran out of energy to speak.

Because Barry didn't need to have Mesprit's empathic powers to know they both felt the same concern, the same powerlessness. Once again, Niss had burned herself out in order to save them, and once again Barry hadn't noticed until it was too late. Hadn't been able to stop her. Maybe if he'd pushed Mesprit's power more, if he'd taken more of the burden…

He scrunched up his face, and shook his head. No, there was no point in blaming himself. He just had to be here for her this time. He wouldn't leave her side until–

The door opened behind them. Barry turned, and his eyes widened at the sight of the doctor. He sprung up to his feet, heart jumping to his throat. He reacted like this every time he came back.

"I-is-did you check the-N-Niss' studie–?"

"Please, calm down," said the man, frowning behind his glasses. "I'm just here to bring another bag of saline solution."

Both he and Metchi deflated at those words, though they didn't take their eyes off him as he moved to Niss' side and started exchanging the bags.

"Any news on how she's doing?" asked Metchi, failing to keep the desperation off her voice.

"Well… it all depends on how her situation develops throughout the day," the doctor said. "It's like we told you–"

"Tell us what!?" Barry demanded, the pitch of his voice exploding. "We've been here for like twenty hours and no one's told us anything! I-it's all just vague… medical stuff that doesn't mean anything to us! Can you just tell us how she is!?"

His outburst surprised them. Metchi's expression softened and she looked as though she was about to reach a hand to him, but thought better of it. The doctor simply finished setting the bag on the IV drip and sighed. Barry felt a rush of shame going up his body.

"Be mindful," Mesprit cautioned him. "Your emotions are dangerously close to overflowing.

"S-sorry…" He grabbed the side of his head, dispelling the golden light behind his eyes. "Sorry, I'm just…"

"It's alright. You're not the first loved one of a patient who has yelled at me, and you won't be the last." The doctor said it bitterly, but he shone him a smile nonetheless. "We simply don't want to rush to conclusions before we're sure. But rest assured, Inyssa is in no mortal peril. She will recover."

Barry nodded weakly and took a step back, closing his eyes and sighing. Metchi turned to the doctor. "Isn't there anything else you could tell us? I know we're not relatives, but at least to know what she's dealing with… y'know, what that 'recovery' will look like eventually."

The man said nothing for a few seconds, arms folded, expression impassible. He looked from Metchi to Barry, then back at the sleeping Inyssa.

"I… guess I could tell you this," he caved in. "We're only giving her sedatives and strong painkillers until the worst of her bruising heals, and until her laceration wounds close. Once she's discharged, though, she will probably need around a month of mandated physical therapy to make sure her scars don't open again. Not to mention the psychological aid she'll need for that month… and beyond, if her mental medical history is anything to go by."

Barry's heart sank to his stomach. It was a struggle not to let the light behind his eyes spark up again.

"Is it… that bad?" he whispered. "I mean, her wounds…"

The man took off his glasses and started cleaning them on his coat as he spoke. "It might help if put into perspective. Old scars opening up can be treated easily, but Inyssa's were different, because they are Lichtenberg scars, and thus cover a significant portion of her body. We've… never seen those kinds of scar open up, to be honest. I imagine it must be due to her special circumstances…"

He looked at both of them as he said that. Metchi nodded. Barry looked down, remembering the way Niss had summoned that massive surge of lightning. The way her power had ran through her scars like blood, boiling them open. The thought made him want to retch.

"In any case," he continued. "I'm sure one of you must have seen how extensive her scars were. Imagine someone grabbing a knife and running it through the length of every single one of them, opening up the skin. That… is basically what happened to her."

Barry's breath left him. He could feel anger and disgust welling up inside him, swirling and rising up his throat. He tried to inhale, but air didn't seem to want to come into his lungs.

"F-fuck… That's…" Metchi's face had gone pale, her fingers clutching at her own arm.

"It's good whatever that light was that appeared above Mt. Coronet healed her somewhat, like it healed so many others," the doctor said. "Otherwise, with how exhausted her body was when she arrived... But like I said, she's not in danger now. All there's left to do now is wait for her to wake up, and then… you two, and hopefully her family, will help with her recovery."

Metchi swallowed. "Y-yeah, of course."

"…" Barry tried to say something, to thank the man, but no words came out. So he just gave a quick nod and looked down at the bed, ashamed.

"…Well, then. I'm glad I could help," he finally broke the silence. "Don't hesitate to call me if you need anything else."

Barry slumped back into the plastic chair as soon as the man left, head hanging low, a storm of twisting emotions choking him up. He ran a hand through his hair, tapped his foot. Anything to get rid of the awful electric energy running through his veins, prickling at the inside of his skin.

"She's gonna be okay, beanpole," Metchi told him, voice firm. "Focus on that."

"Right…" He glanced toward Niss. "Hey, Uxie, is it true? She's really in that bad a shape?"

A presence washed over the room, followed by a calm, reassuring voice booming in their heads.

"I am aiding her as best I can. I am accelerating her body's healing and making sure her mind is undisturbed in sleep. However… there are few words I could use to describe the strain the past few days have put on her. She is utterly spent in every way imaginable. I reason she will need to focus on her recovery for some time even after she leaves the hospital."

"Tsk. That's why I always told you dumbasses to stay out of trouble," she muttered under her breath.

"...Yeah. Thanks, Uxie."

"There is no need to thank me. I have come to care for Inyssa as much as any of you," said Uxie. "I will do everything in my power to help."

Mesprit's voice whispered inside Barry's head. "It ill-suits the occasion to take my spot as the sensitive one."

Barry said nothing, head falling down between his shoulders again. Uxie's words had done nothing to dispel the antsy energy skittering through his body.

Luckily, he didn't have much time to sit stewing in his thoughts, as the door opened a few seconds later, and in came Johanna and Fantina.

"H-hello. Sorry for taking so long."

He looked up at them, trying to focus on their expressions as to distract himself, and he didn't need Mesprit's powers to know something had gone wrong during Johanna's visit to Shadi. The woman's eyes were red from crying, her mascara smudgy on her cheeks, and she looked like a stiff breeze would knock her off her feet. Fantina was far more composed, but it was clear she was upset as well.

"Everything okay?" asked Metchi.

"Y…yes. Don't worry," Johanna lied, putting on a smile and looking away. "I… we'll be looking over Inyssa f-for a bit, if that's okay. You told me you had someplace to be, so…"

Metchi nodded slowly, picking up on something. "Right," she said. "I'll… go see if I can find Lucian and the others, then. Barry…"

Barry didn't look her way, frowning. He didn't want to leave Niss' side, even if it was to give Johanna some alone time. But before he could say anything of the sort, Fantina chimed in.

"Yes, speaking of which. Barry…" She swallowed, looking toward the door. "We meant to tell you. Sarah is here."

He shot up to his feet quick, eyes shooting wide open. "W-what!? But she was… wasn't she in Pastoria's hospital!?"

"She was discharged an hour ago, apparently." Fantina's lips quirked up with familiar irritation. "That's just how your mother is, I'm afraid."

Johanna nodded. "We didn't talk much, but she told us to… tell you she was here." Her voice shook a bit. "And that she had some business to take care of with Lucian, so she couldn't see you right now. But once she was free she'd–"

Light exploded behind Barry's eyes. His sudden appall and anger hit everyone like a gust of wind, forcing them back a stumbling step. Was this some kind of joke? Was she really…?

Without a word Barry walked across the room and slammed the door shut behind him, making the walls shake and leaving behind an unpleasant silence. Until Fantina broke it, that is.

"…Told you he'd react that way," she sighed. "Paladinos are all so terribly predictable."

----------------------------------------

Pyxis made it barely a minute into her little stealth mission before she outed herself.

It'd been an otherwise painless trip from Pastoria to Jubilife, thanks to Caelum's bike and Orion's driving. She wouldn't have been able to make it alone, partly because she didn't have a driver's license and partly because she hadn't yet fully recovered from her bullet wound. Technically, she wasn't supposed to leave her room, much less the hospital or the town, but what the doctors didn't know couldn't hurt them.

Besides, once she heard what had happened, she'd stubbornly insisted on this course of action. Orion couldn't talk her out of it, so he decided to at least accompany her, to make sure she was safe. But Orion wasn't here now. He was waiting downstairs since she'd insisted she do this alone, because she didn't want anyone to see her… like this.

Unfortunately, she'd been stuck waiting for a couple minutes now, ear practically glued to the door that lead to Inyssa's room. The two people inside, one of whom she guessed was Inyssa's mom, were talking amongst themselves and simply refused to leave the room, to her annoyance.

You know, maybe they don't want to leave because Inyssa is in a delicate state, her brain told her. And it'd be irresponsible to leave her alone.

Pyxis' eyes went wide. Right. She hadn't thought of that before coming here.

Still, they had to go to the bathroom eventually, or something. And while she was here stuck waiting, it would've been… rude not to eavesdrop a little, right? What else was she supposed to do?

"…ust can't believe she–I… dear Mew, she practically broke her wrist! I'd never seen her like that, I didn't know… s-she really hated me that much."

Who hated who? The woman she assumed was Inyssa's mom sounded on the verge of tears. Pyxis blinked in curiosity and got her ear closer, listening intently.

The other woman sighed. "I told you this was a bad idea. In the state she's in, and with all that happened… every negative emotion can feed itself until it becomes out of control. She was bound to react like this."

"S-she's my daughter, I can't just… I haven't seen her for over three years! You can't blame me for wanting to check up on her."

"…This is something you should already understand now, after all you went through with Inyssa. When you're the source of someone's discomfort, your good-will is nothing but a taunt to them."

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

"But…"

"Trust me. She needs space, just like Inyssa did. You took the slow route there, and it paid off. With Shadi… I imagine it will be much harder, and I can't promise you'll ever succeed, or even make progress, but rushing things is not the way to go about it." She took a deep breath, and Pyxis heard her step toward Inyssa's mother. "Scars inflicted by a mother rarely heal. I hated mine all my life, and my daughter feels the same toward me. You can be different, but only if you put your daughters' needs before your own."

"…I… no, you're right. I'm sorry, I…"

"It's fine. Take a moment to breathe. I can get some water if you want."

"N-no, it's… I'm fine, I'm…"

So enraptured Pyxis was on whatever the hell was going on between these two that she didn't notice that the temperature of the hallway around her had started to drop. Slowly, one degree at a time. It was only when she saw visible mist come out of her mouth that she broke out of her trance, and felt a shiver wash over her.

W-what the…?

"I was going to open the door regardless," the other woman said inside the room. "Might as well invite our unwanted guest in."

Before Pyxis could process those words, a large shadow fell over her, obscuring the light of the fluorescent tube above. Pyxis blinked, befuddled, and looked over her shoulder. A pair of enormous, glowing red eyes met hers. Pure darkness smiled at her with a grin as wide as she was tall.

"Kekeke…"

"WH-GHFUCK!"

Pyxis jumped back with such strength that the door blasted open, and she fell inside the room, though the pain of the impact was minimized by the panic and adrenaline running through her.

"W-what the f-fuck!?"

She turned over to sit, and only then her eyes adjusted enough to realize the creature behind her was actually a Pokemon. As soon as she realized, the woman spoke.

"Thank you, Gengar. I suppose it was a good idea to leave you guarding the hallway."

Realization dawned on Pyxis all at once, and she felt heat rise to her face as she looked over her shoulder, seeing Inyssa's mother and Fantina standing there, one looking with irritation, the other confusion.

"Uh…I…"

Inyssa's mom was the first to reach toward her. Pyxis froze, and for a moment was about to jump back, but she was only offering her hand.

"Are you okay?" the woman asked, sniffling. Her eyes were red from crying. "Did you hurt yourself?"

"I-uh…" Pyxis swallowed. "N-no, I'm… fine."

Seeing as she wasn't going to take the hand any time soon, the woman knelt in front of Pyxis and helped her up to her feet. All the while she was stiff as a board, still shivering.

"There you go," she said with a smile. Then she turned to look at Fantina, and frowned. "That wasn't very nice."

Fantina shrugged. "She was eavesdropping."

Pyxis inhaled sharply and raised a hand to her chest. "I-I was not! I just… heard you two talking and didn't want to interrupt!" she lied. "I just came to give Inyssa something, that's all!"

A disbelieving eyebrow went up on Fantina's face, and that gesture alone sent another chill down Pyxis' spine. The other woman, however, had no trouble believing her. There was a glint of happiness in her eyes.

"Ah… you must be someone Inyssa met on her travels. It's nice to know she made so many friends…" She shone her a warm smile. "My name is Johanna, I'm Inyssa's mother. What's yours?"

But it was hard to reply, as the implication that she was one of Inyssa's… friends, shocked her into pure silence. A conflicting storm of emotions swirled inside her. Johanna was wrong. She wasn't Inyssa's friend, not even close to it, but…

Why did you come, then?

She looked down, and bit her lip. "I… just owe her, I guess."

"Oh! Are you one of her rivals?"

That thought put a wry smile on Pyxis' face. Johanna probably thought she was a trainer, and that made something inside her chest turn sour. But the idea of being one, and having Inyssa as a rival…

Somehow, it didn't sound so bad.

"Something like that," she muttered. "I'm Pyxis. Nice to meet you."

Their fingers met for a handshake, and behind Johanna, the Gym leader's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"…I see now." She closed her eyes and chuckled. "It must have been a long trip here from Pastoria. I trust your wounds caused you no trouble?"

"Huh?" Johanna turned to look at her, confused.

Pyxis swallowed, pulling back from the handshake and unconsciously leaning away from Fantina. How did she know? The incident in Pastoria had been kept a secret thanks to Lucian's influence. Had she peeked through the Association's intelligence division files? She probably had the authority, and was smart enough to foresee the need to investigate these things. Besides, Lucian was her brother. He might have just told her.

A knowing look and smile from the Gym leader answered that particular question.

"You said you came to give Inyssa something, correct?" Fantina asked. "Well, don't let us stop you. I'm sure she'll appreciate the gesture once she wakes up."

Nothing could have prepared Pyxis for hearing that. She actually let out a high-pitched 'Huh!?', eyes shooting wide open.

"R-really?" she asked, half relieved and half confused. "But… you know who I am. Why would you…?"

Fantina snickered. "I am a very good judge of character, dear. And I can tell you bear no ill-will toward Inyssa, conflicted though you may be on the inside. I'm guessing something happened in Pastoria to warm you up toward her?"

A mix of appall and embarrassment rose up her throat, making her unable to reply. She just looked down and pursed her lips as she felt her face flush. She had to change the subject somehow.

"I-I just… wanted to get rid of this, and I figured Inyssa might wanna have it."

And she took it out from her pocket. A normal, empty Pokeball with a bunch of tiny scratches all over it. It'd seen some better days, but it looked functional still.

"An… empty Pokeball?" Johanna mused, curious.

A sound like a whine left Pyxis mouth. Right, they didn't know…

"This was… originally going to be my starter's Pokeball. But then a bunch of stuff happened…" She ran her free hand through her hair, annoyed. "A-anyway, Inyssa now has that Pokemon, so I figured… maybe she'd like to have this. It was meant for that Pokemon anyway, and…"

It was hard. Talking about it, but also parting with this memento of her past, this reminder of what she'd lost, and what she'd take back from those that had ruined her dreams. But now…

"I don't need it anymore," she said to no one. "I figure… next time I hold a Pokeball, it'll be that of my future partner. So I'm getting rid of this one, that's all. It's not a gesture or anything, I'm just being practical about it."

The way she looked away and blushed, however, indicated otherwise. The two older women were kind enough to overlook that, however, simply exchanging a knowing glance between them.

"I see… that is very kind of you," said Fantina.

"I'm so grateful… that Inyssa met so many wonderful people throughout her journey." Johanna looked again on the verge of tears, one hand pressed against her chest. "I-I'm sorry. Please, don't let us stop you. We can give you some space if you want, so…"

Pyxis swallowed, feeling her embarrassment churning in her stomach. "N-no, it's fine, I'll just…"

She walked over toward the bed, stopping next to it with Pokeball in hand. A storm of conflicting emotions swirled inside her at the sight of the bedridden and unconscious Inyssa, making her nauseous. She swallowed, fingers gripping the ball hard.

"…I'm sorry," she whispered so that only the sleeping Inyssa could hear. "Hope your Kricketune likes it."

And she left the Pokeball on the stand next to the bed. Then, she took out something else from her pocket, a tiny flowerpot containing a single green and pink bud, still to open. She left it next to the ball.

"And this is from Simone and their friends. Figured I might as well bring it."

She turned around. It was kind of Johanna and Fantina to overlook the fact that her eyes were itchy for some reason, and she had to rub her sleeve against them. Her nose felt a bit runny too, but she ignored that.

"A-anyway, that's all I came here to do," she said, ignoring their eyes. "I should probably leave. My friend's waiting for me downstairs."

Johanna smiled. "Of course… but you're free to come visit whenever you'd like. Please remember that," she said. "I'm sure Inyssa would appreciate that."

Pyxis raised a hand to rub at the back of her neck, and smiled as she looked away. "Yeah… maybe. I'll have to think about i–"

A lot of things happened at once.

Fantina shot up as though a particularly strong shiver had washed over her body, and her eyes went wide with alarm and confusion. A rush of golden wind ran through the air outside beyond the windows of the room.

And then, a powerful force washed over the building, and all the windows shattered violently, raining glass upon the room.

----------------------------------------

5 minutes before

Barry and Sarah stood across from each other on the long, empty hallway, staring. The boy's eyes were wide and disbelieving, while Sarah's were cold and narrowed.

"Go back to your room," Sarah said with authority. "I'll come by to visit you and Inyssa later."

"Wh-whu… what are you talking about?" Barry's arms raised and fell anxiously, his voice wavering on the edge of yelling. "Mom, what are you doing here so soon? Weren't you in the hospital in Pastoria? And w-why didn't you tell me…?"

Sarah closed her eyes and sighed in that way she did when her patience was close to snapping. Her face was pale and gaunt, the lines across her face exacerbated by lack of sleep. They cast ominous shadows across the bridge of her brows.

"I didn't want to worry you, and I have work to do," she said, slowly enunciating every word. "Like I said, we can talk later. Go back–"

"I'm not going anywhere!"

His foot echoed through the hallway as he stomped it, anger starting to rise up his face, flushing his ears.

"There's no way you're already okay after what happened," he said. "A-and even if you are, the first thing you do is come here and... work? You didn't even come see us or Niss or… w-what are you even…?" He ran an anxious hand through his hair his breathing getting harsher. "What are you even in such a hurry for? I don't get it."

The line that formed on Sarah's forehead meant danger, but Barry didn't care at this point. This was absurd. After all that happened, his mom still…

"Shouldn't it be obvious?" Sarah asked, folding her arms. "Lucian is preparing a meeting to decide how the Association should proceed from now on. As her right-hand woman, I have to be there to make sure he doesn't decide on anything stupid."

"Anything… stupid? Like what?"

The lines around Sarah's eyes thickened, her lips pursing. "Like letting members of Team Galactic off the hook, just because they helped stop Cyrus. Like making sudden changes to the Association that would only disrupt the region further. Like listening to brats and foreigners who've only just joined this fight." She spoke every word with venom, as though the mere idea disgusted her. "But most importantly… I have to make sure he doesn't even think about offering Shadi a deal."

He felt his stomach dropping with every word his mother said, but it was only with that last sentence that a terrible wave of unease washed over him, and bile started rising up his throat.

"S…Shadi?"

A hateful, knife-cut smile spread across Sarah's pale face. "That coward tried making all of us forget her, and she almost succeeded. For weeks, I felt as if I knew someone had killed my husband… but I didn't know who. But now I know. And even if I have to fight Lucian on it, even if I have to fight Johanna and Inyssa and all of Sinnoh, even it's the last thing I do… I'll make sure Shadi rots in prison for the rest of her life. It's what a parasite like her deserves."

"…" Arms slowly lowering to his side, Barry stared horrified at his mother and whispered. "W-what's wrong with you?"

An immediate glint of fury flashed behind her eyes, and her nostrils flared for a moment. "What's… wrong with me? Ha. I've been asking the same of everyone else. I might've been a bit too harsh on you and Inyssa, you're kids after all. But what's everyone else's excuse? To think we've sunk this low… so tell me, what's wrong with what I said?" she asked, almost baring her teeth. "I thought you'd agree with me on that last point at least."

"I-I… no! Of course not! Don't you think there's more important stuff to worry about than… getting back to Shadi!?"

Sarah's eyes narrowed with pity. "…He never did spend too much time around you, I guess. It's no wonder you weren't that attached. And you were both trainers… you must've known this is how he'd end up. Still, I figured you'd be more broken up about it."

Barry's jaw fell. He could not believe the words coming out of his mother. "O…of course I am. Mom, w-why… why are you saying all this? I d-didn't want this. I never w-wanted any of this to happen, how can you s-say…?"

"I told you a million times, and you never listened," Sarah hissed. "Neither of you. I told you after the funeral, didn't I? This is what you reap for not heeding my warnings and trying to play heroes all on your own. I heard the state Inyssa's in, and it's a miracle you both are alive at all. But if this is what you want as trainers, then I can't stop you. All I can do is work as hard as I can to keep you safe, and if that means neutralizing all the threats to this region's peace on my own… then that's fine by me."

And with an exhalation that was almost a scoff, Sarah shook her head and turned around after she finished speaking, taking a step toward the door at the end of the hallway.

"Now be good and head back to your room, like I said," she ordered. "Let the adults do the fixin–"

She never got to take her second step. A wild, bellowing gust of what felt like wind but looked more like light slammed against her back, almost throwing her off balance. The walls around her shook, as though hit by a shockwave. A sharp, crawling anger washed over her from the outside, pure emotion turned into heat.

Then she heard Barry stammer a scream behind her.

"Wh-gh-w-we're not fucking done here!"

Sarah stumbled a step and looked over her shoulder, eyes widening at the sudden burst of golden light enveloping her son. It coiled around him in ribbons of luminescent wind, raging like a miniature storm.

And he was crying underneath all that, face contorted with barely-kept rage. He raised a shaking finger toward her and spoke with a shaky, high-pitched voice.

"L-listen up you big d-dismissive piece of shit!" He yelled the words sharply, rapid-fire, not giving his brain a second to process what he was saying. Sarah's jaw dropped from sheer disbelief as she heard him. "I'm not g-gonna let you talk about me and Niss like that, you have no idea what we went through a-and you think you're the only one who's sad and angry that you lost someone!? W-we got hurt and everything 'cause we were trying to help and w-wh–meanwhile you were in the hospital for h-hunting and shooting down a kid, so cool it with your fucking high-Ponyta holier than thou nonsense, I'm not having none of it! You're gonna stand here and you're gonna think about what you said and we're gonna be calm and we're gonna talk and you're gonna apologize! A-and then we can worry about your one-man fix-it all vendetta syndrome bullshit, so fucking cool it!"

His voice was hoarse by the time he finished. It echoed off the walls, booming stronger than it should have. Blasts of golden wind burst through the hallway with each gesticulation he made, all that anxious energy inside him finally being put to good use.

Sarah was rendered speechless. The look on her face was like if someone had slapped her across the face with a Magikarp. It was enough to momentarily lift the darkness pooling in her expression for a few moments.

"Barry, I–"

"No! You don't get to talk yet!" Barry exploded, contradicting what he'd said mere seconds ago. He raised a finger at Sarah, forcing her to take a step back. "Y-you're so… agh! All this time you were treating everyone like shit and acting like you're the only one who knows what she's doing, but what the hell did that amount to, huh!? How did hunting down and trying to kill Pyxis help the region in any way!? Y-you're just a selfish jerk! And y-you're so childish too! How come I have to explain to you that you're supposed to care about people other than your family!? And even then y-you're so spiteful and s-self-righteous, it makes me sick! Tell me, how did treating me and Niss like shit helps in any way!? Huh!?"

"But-I-I…"

"You think I don't hate Shadi too!?" He clutched at his chest as he yelled that, tears running down his cheeks. "S-she's the worst! Of course I wish she'd just go off and die! But I h-have to be there for Niss and be supportive of what she feels toward her a-and… and it fucking sucks! It sucks and I hate that she still l-loves her but I can't change her mind or make her decisions for her, s-so I just gotta be there for her and help her through it and listen to her talk about how conflicted s-she feels about the girl that killed my fucking dad! I know how you feel, but w-what am I supposed to do, tell Niss that I wish her sister was dead!? Go and kill her myself!? What the hell would that accomplish? It s-sucks but I'm not a selfish piece of shit like you, so it never crossed my mind to focus on getting revenge when there's so many people hurt who need our help, when there's so much more we should focus on instead of what we want! How the am I the one that needs to explain this to you!? What the hell is wrong with you!?"

That final yell echoed with enough force to make the lights of the hallway blink in and out as the walls shook, dust falling from the crevices. And with that final yell, most of that golden strength inside him flared, and burned out. Light-headed, voice hoarse, Barry stumbled back and tripped from dizziness, falling to his knees and struggling to keep himself there. Quick, harsh breaths weren't enough to drive air to his lungs. His own heartbeat deafened him.

And all the while, Sarah just stood there and watched, like a Deerling caught in headlights. Never had she been stunned into such silence.

Barry placed a hand against the floor to steady himself and hung his head, locks of blonde hair falling over his face. He could steel feel that anxious anger crawling through his veins, but he felt so exhausted all of a sudden. So… empty.

"…It is good to let out your emotions sometimes," Mesprit spoke inside his head. "But if you bottle them up for too long…"

The sentence didn't need to be finished for Barry to understand. He scrunched up his face and tried holding back his tears, the crawling feeling under his skin almost unbearable.

When he spoke again, his voice was weak and wavy.

"It's like… I lost both of you," he whispered. "A-and I c-can't tell Niss all this and… t-there was so much to do and so many things happening. I wanted… t-to keep things the same, just like you, but I learned that only makes things worse. It makes the people w-who aren't happy hate you, and it's w-why… Team Galactic appeared. So I tried to stop feeling that way a-and stop being so wishy-washy, but it's hard. It's h-hard and now dad is dead and you're like this and I'm… i-it's just so hard. I don't know…"

He managed to lift up his head, and through locks of blond hair glanced up at Sarah. There was a change in her expression. The lines around her eyes shook slightly, and she was tearing up. It was a very odd look on her face.

"Barry…" There was a moment of deliberation. She swallowed, lower lip shaking, then finally said it. "I-I'm sorry…"

That gave him enough strength to push himself to his knees, looking straight at his mother, bewildered. Had she really…?

"I'm sorry," she repeated, then looked down and added. "I… should've been the one to die instead of Palmer."

It was like a bucket of icy water being dumped on him. Barry's face went pale, his eyes widening, the corners of them twitching. A sudden, renewed burst of brilliant golden fury swirled inside his chest, then exploded outwards like a storm as he opened his eyes and let out a yell filled to the brim with pure, unbridled frustration.

And with it, a shockwave of force that shattered every light and window on that floor.