The dawn that met Metchi was a gentle and warm one. A good sign, she decided to see it as, instead of a pre-death apology gift given to her by the universe.

She stood atop one of the thousands of hills that covered the sides of Mt. Coronet like earthy pimples. Far below, enough to force her to narrow her eyes to see it, sat the crystalline waters of Lake Valor. The light of the sun reflected off them, turning it into a a ring of pure light that separated the nearby forest from the small island in the middle. As if they didn't belong in the same world together. They probably didn't, if what she'd learned was any evidence of it.

"Ever walked into a trap, Azelf?" she said, her voice strangely calm. "Knowing it was one beforehand, I mean."

"I can't say that I have," the disembodied voice replied a moment after. "Although after such a long life I suppose I should be open to new experiences."

She felt something like a tickle inside her chest, her lips unconsciously curling upwards as if someone were tugging at their edges. It was the first time such a sensation came from Azelf.

"Was that… a joke?" Her eyes widened. "Coming from you? I can't believe it! A true miracle, as I live and breathe."

"I wouldn't mind a miracle today. Us surviving to see another day, for example."

Metchi didn't reply. She'd survived plenty of bad situations before, most of which she shouldn't have. Actually, all of them, now that she thought about it. She'd always strode forward, chin raised, chest puffed and knowing that the sun would rise the next day even if she didn't. And every time…

Despite the overwhelming odds, tomorrow came.

She couldn't help but smile at the familiar phrase. Things were different now; should she fail, should Team Galactic succeed in their plans… she wasn't sure there would be a tomorrow for anyone to wake up to.

What a lousy fucking hero you turned out to be, said the voice in her head.

If she were a trainer she would've had such an easier time dealing with Team Galactic, she might've even gotten the chance to take out some of their commanders by now. If she had a family or money or anyone to help her, it all would've gone a bit smoother as well. If anything, she shouldn't have had to sleep on the floor every night and survive off whatever she could steal.

But no; all she had were the clothes on her back, her street smarts and her desire not to let those bastards achieve their goal.

I've gotten by with worse before, she thought with a smile.

The calluses on her hands stung as she curled her fingers. Still getting used to them. She figured she'd been doing pretty well, since she almost never noticed them recently.

A memory teased itself from the depths of her mind. Her eyes went pale and distant. A younger Metchi, though not by much. Stockier, cleaner, her pink hair a much more vibrant hue. A forced, difficult smile. Eyes brimming with apathy and shame.

She was six months into her work as a Team Galactic member when it happened.

She'd taken a stroll through the wrong hallway, heard all kinds of things she wasn't supposed to hear. Were it not for her careful steps and natural stealth, the boss would've surely noticed her. Then it would be a swift death for her, and a hand waved explanation for the few friends she had in the base. She'd been killed in a mission, she'd been arrested by the authorities, she'd slipped on the stairs and broken her neck. But she went unnoticed, and as such heard the entire conversation. Horror crept up in her chest, and it did not leave her for the days to come. She knew she stood at a crossroads, there was a decision to be made. She could try to forget what she'd heard. Go back to her usual routine; clean the floors, restock the deposit, give out inventory to the grunts who needed it, force smiles whenever it was her shift at the cafeteria…

Or -and the idea terrified her to her core- she could be the person she'd always wanted to be. It would've meant giving up all the safety and comfort Team Galactic had given her. It would've meant betraying Saturn and the rest of her friends; the first people in Sinnoh who'd shown her kindness and understanding. The only ones who'd bothered give her a hand ever since she'd left Hoenn…

It was an absolutely ridiculous idea. She wasn't a hero, she'd known it all her life. She was a thief, a scoundrel. She had no family, no money and no honor. She was not a Pokemon trainer. She wasn't even a good person. What good could possibly come of doing the right thing?

The moment she accepted her role hadn't been one worth remembering, it wasn't the kind of origin a hero would have. But if no one else was going to do it, she figured she might as well sneak into Charon's lab and steal Azelf before she made her escape. After that she would wander the region, looking for someone who actually deserved the title of hero. She would offer Azelf to them, walk away smiling and crawl back into her life of degeneracy.

A perfect plan, were it not for the fact that she never actually found anyone worthier than her to be Azelf's partner. Fate was funny that way.

Months later and she was still playing the hero, the title still as unfit as it'd been the first day. Still, she could feel herself easing into it as time went on. Like a pair of shoes that became more comfortable the more she walked on them. For the first time in her life she didn't feel ashamed of who she was. If she were to die today, and her short journey as a hero were to come to an untimely end, she would have no regrets.

"Alright…" She turned towards the hidden side of the hill. "…y'all ready to walk to your deaths?"

The Monferno barely registered her words, letting out a scoff. Lyserg sat next to him, the exact opposite. Her eyes were full of worry and sadness, the bright green of her wings paler than she'd remembered. Under her wing hung Metchi's backpack containing the papers she'd stolen. She'd told Lyserg that, should she not return after two days, she needed to fly west and give them to Professor Rowan.

Still an Association bastard, but the old man's got a good heart, had been her reasoning. Even now she was starting to doubt it.

"That's just in case," she assured her Pokemon with a smile, for the millionth time. "I'll come back to you, I promise."

The Tropius' eyes began to water, which made Metchi feel as if someone had wrung her heart like a wet piece of clothing. Monferno made a face of disgust and took one step to the side; whether due to his phobia to anything resembling water or his disgust for such sentimentalism, she did not know.

"Traa!" the grass Pokemon cried, and Metchi didn't need to be psychic to understand what she'd said.

If that's so then why can't I come with you?

"Because you've never been in a fight in your life," she smiled. "And because I'd rather doom the world than risk you getting hurt."

She tried her best to hide her voice breaking as she spoke. Knowing that she couldn't take much more of seeing her dear friend like that, she looked at Monferno instead.

"Are you sure, too?" she frowned. "You don't owe me anything. You can go back to your trainer if you want to."

For a moment she saw his expression waver, along with the flame of willpower inside of him. After all her practicing she could turn on the eyes at will, and without much trouble.

She saw temptation grow in his heart, until it was swiftly overpowered by what she assumed was his pride. He would not let any more debts unpaid, not while he remained standing and breathing. At least that's what Metchi imagined he was thinking.

Monferno gave a decisive nod, his will as firm as steel. She smiled warmly, nodded as well, and turned to look at the lake one last time.

"Walking to our deaths it is, then," she whispered. "Wonderful."

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

Despite her best wishes, Inyssa had to admit she'd never slept as soundly in any bed as she did in the one Cynthia provided for her.

She mentally chastised herself as she changed into her clothes the next morning, eyes still half lidded. Wasn't she supposed to be careful and vigilant during the night? She was in the house of the one who'd arranged their meeting with Wrathia! How could she trust the woman after that?

True, they'd enjoyed an amicable chat with her during dinner, but those were nothing more than empty pleasantries. From it they'd learned that Cynthia and her grandmother were the groundskeepers of the city's ancient ruins, a job passed down their family for generations. She'd offered to give them a tour after the festival, and unfortunately Barry agreed before Inyssa could think of an excuse. The poor idiot didn't have a flair for suspicion; a look at his eyes told her he'd forgotten completely about the dangerous stunt Cynthia had pulled on them.

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She still remembered, though, and as such decided to keep her guard up just in case.

Still, she couldn't deny that the bed and room she'd been offered were as pleasantly cozy as a summer night. She let out a big yawn as she walked downstairs to the living room, the wooden steps creaking under her boots.

"Good morning Niss!" Barry called out from a nearby chair, beaming. "Slept well?"

"Prii!" Auri smiled from between his arms.

"Like a dead Snorlax," Inyssa whispered. "Good morning, Barry. Good morning, Auri."

The living room wasn't as big as the one in her house, though it looked ten times as warm and comfortable. Between the rugs, curtains, pieces of furniture and hundreds of makeshift decorations she could hardly stop craning her neck around like a Noctowl full of caffeine. She noticed an Alolan dream catcher in front of the door separating the room from the kitchen, a Johtoan wind chime modeled after a Chimecho and even a miniature of the Lumiose Prism Tower serving as the table's center piece.

"She must travel a lot…" Inyssa whispered to herself as she sat next to Barry.

"You don't know half of it."

She almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of that voice. The door creaked behind her, opening to reveal Cynthia's grandmother walking into the room with a plastic tray on her hands. On top of it was a steaming plate of chocolate-chip cookies and three mugs full of some dark liquid. They emanated the most delicious, mouth-watering smell one could imagine.

"Homemade cookies!" Barry yelped, eyes brightening. He turned to look at the old woman as if she'd saved his life. "Thank you so much!"

"Nothing to it," she shrugged, her voice halfway between a whisper and a cough. "These are Lava Cookies, recipe straight out of Lavarridge. And these mugs have Komala coffee, so I'd advise you wait a bit until they cool off." Her eyes moved towards Inyssa. "You should eat too, girl. You're more skin and bones than that reckless granddaughter of mine."

"Y-yes, thank you!" she nodded, grabbing one of the mugs. "My name is Inyssa, by the way. I'm sorry for not introducing myself earlier."

She gave a stiff nod, "Carolina, it's a pleasure." She sat down and took a bite of one of the cookies, her face as rough and stern as a rock. "So, you've run into Cynthia before? It's rare for her to invite people home, moreso without telling me beforehand."

Inyssa felt a tinge of shame tinting her cheeks, though nothing in Carolina's tone indicated that she found displeasure in their company. Next to her Barry was in the process of swallowing half of his cookie, eyes stinging with tears due to how hot they were. Auri had grabbed one as well, as big and wide as her head.

"I met her in a church in Hearthome," Barry said, swallowing with difficulty. "Then we… ran into her again on our way to Pastoria."

She didn't fail to pick up on his pause, nor the fact that he hadn't mentioned what came of that particular meeting. Carolina didn't seem to notice, or so Inyssa thought.

"Can't be a coincidence then," the woman said. "My granddaughter's not an easy woman to run into once, much less three times. She must have some interest in you two."

Inyssa did not like one bit the way she pronounced the word interest, though she had little time to protest as the front door swung open at that moment. Cynthia walked through, looking as striking and beautiful as she'd done every time they'd seen her and Oh god did I really think that? No, bad Inyssa! You're supposed to be wary of her, it doesn't matter how beautiful she is!

She took the mug to her lips to hide her blush, accidentally burning her tongue.

"Good morning, you two!" Cynthia exclaimed with a wide smile. "I apologize for my tardiness, I was busy helping out with the festival preparations; you would not believe how annoying Lucian can be when he gives me a schedule. Ah, I see you've tried my gran's wonderful cookies already!"

She spoke fast and with little difficulty, which left Barry and Inyssa without much time to reply.

"Someone had to tend to the guests while you goofed around," Carolina muttered under her breath. "About darn time you joined us. I'm no good at small talk. You take care of them while I take care of my cookies."

And with that she got to her feet and left the room, all the while grumbling under her breath. Cynthia sat in her place, letting out a deep sigh as she let her shoulders fall and her back rest on the wooden chair. When she closed her eyes she looked as peaceful as if she were sleeping, though once she opened them again their stormy grey sent chills down Inyssa's spine. For some reason the way they looked at things put her on edge.

Silence stretched through the room for a few moments –only occasionally broken by Auri's chirps of delight as she chomped on her own cookie– while Cynthia took a sip of her own mug, a satisfied smile forming on her lips. Inyssa looked to the side, exchanging looks with Barry, and could tell exactly what he was thinking.

"I've heard you got Pastoria's badge," Cynthia finally said, setting her mug on the table. "Congratulations. Wake might be a giant goof of a man, but he certainly knows his way around battles." Her gaze went to Barry, whose shoulders stiffened as if he'd been shocked with electricity. "I also heard that you made good use of the Houndoom you caught shortly after our last meeting."

Barry looked as if his throat was completely dry, "Y-yeah… I couldn't have met her without you."

Cynthia nodded and smiled, and Inyssa noticed a strange glimpse behind her eyes.

She knows, she thought. And she knows that we know.

"I pride myself in helping trainers in need," she said, putting a hand on her chest. "Who knows, in the future they might grow strong enough to give me a battle worth remembering."

Inyssa's fingers closed strongly around the handle of her mug.

"So we're an investment, then?" she asked, heat in her voice. "Is that why you almost had us killed by that thing?"

There was a sudden pause, not only to the conversation but to the atmosphere around them. Barry stared at her with something like surprise and alarm, while Cynthia held her mug over the table, frozen in place.

Then she smiled, though not like she'd seen her do it before. She seemed to shrink into her seat; her look that of a young girl who'd been caught doing mischief.

"I suppose it was rather heavy handed, wasn't it?" she asked, setting the mug on the table. "I couldn't think of a way for that Houndoom to keep the plate without tying it around her neck. I didn't have much time to work with, you see."

They were taken aback by how pleasantly honest she was. Not for a second did serious guilt flash across her eyes, and she hadn't tried to deny what she'd done. That left Inyssa rather speechless, knowing not how to continue the conversation.

"You… really did that?" asked Barry, lips pursing. "Why? We could've gotten hurt! If it weren't for Auri…"

Cynthia raised one of her hands, and Barry ceased speaking.

"I admit that the situation got more out of hand than I expected. I couldn't have predicted the egg to hatch at that moment," she confessed. "However, before you think badly of me I implore of you to listen.

"Neither you nor your Pokemon were in any real danger. I was hidden behind a nearby tree and I would've stopped the Houndoom if your Togepi hadn't gotten to it first," she explained. "I didn't actually leave when we said goodbye. What would be the point, if I was the one to set up the encounter?"

As much as that made sense, Inyssa couldn't feel but be surprised. How had they not noticed her?

"That still doesn't explain why you threw a living flamethrower at us," Inyssa said, a clear edge to her voice. "If that's your idea of a prank…"

"It was not a prank. Would you believe me if I told you that I wanted to see you battle?" Her long fingers curled into each other gingerly. "I saw you coming from afar while studying that Houndoom and the idea came to my mind, though as you can surmise I've never been good at thinking things through. I had heard so much about the two of you, and after meeting Barry back in Hearthome… I suppose I couldn't help myself."

She squared up her shoulders, a tuft of hair moving like a curtain as it fell against one of her arms. Its bright gold contrasted beautifully with her stylish black coat, something Inyssa couldn't help but be momentarily stunned by. She was alluring in a way she couldn't properly explain.

Curse me and my weakness for beautiful women in cool outfits, she sighed.

"Will you forgive me for my rashness?" Cynthia pleaded. "I promise you that I never intended for you to be hurt."

Inyssa and Barry exchanged looks, and she noticed immediately that he'd already forgiven her by his expression alone. With a sigh and a drop of her shoulders she resigned herself to doing the same. Not much use in going against the flow on this one.

"I can understand wanting to see others fight," Barry nodded. "So no hard feelings."

"Yeah, I guess," Inyssa said. "I still don't get it, though. Why go to all the trouble with the Houndoom and that weird plate? Why couldn't you fight us yourself and be done with it? We always accept battles from other trainers."

With movements as fluid as those of a Glameow, Cynthia leaned back into her chair and crossed her arms, the pale skin of her hands contrasting perfectly against the pitch black of her coat. There was a hint of smugness in her expression.

"I believe I already said it before, I wanted to carefully observe your battling styles. Had I challenged you myself, that wouldn't have been possible," she explained as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You would've lost, swiftly and humiliatingly. How could any of us learn anything then?"

Again Inyssa was struck by how bright and honest her tone was. She could feel anger bubbling inside her, but not nearly as much as if anyone else would've said that to her. Coming from Cynthia it didn't sound like an insult or a boast, she fully believed every word she spoke.

Still, the sudden tension in the air was unmistakable. Like a flash of lightning before a thunderstorm.

"Besides, I intended to let you have the Houndoom as a reward for indulging me," she added.

She let her chin rest on one palm, while grabbing her mug with her other hand. Her expression was rather aloof, considering the two teens whose eyes were glaring sparks at her.

"You sound… confident," said Barry, frowning.

"I certainly hope I do, what kind of trainer would I be otherwise?" Cynthia said. "Oh, I hope my comment hasn't offended you. I don't believe you two are weak in any way," she hurried to add. "It's… well, you can't quite replace experience, you know? It's nothing personal, it's just that I've been training Pokemon for longer than you've been alive."

Barry's eyes went wide next to her, but Inyssa found that she wasn't surprised by that information. She could barely make out the lines on the woman's face, since they were often mistook for the wrinkles of her smile, but they were definitely there. If she wasn't in her mid-thirties then she had to be close.

"That might be so…" Inyssa said, slipping a hand into her belt, "…but no one gets to claim something like that unless they're ready to prove it to us." From under the table she raised Kuro's Pokeball, the red on top glistening under the gentle light of the lamp above. "…What do you say?"

Barry seemed stunned, but after a moment he mirrored her cocky smile and grabbed one of his own as well. There was silence for a few breaths. Cynthia eyed them over, the fingers on her right hand eagerly tapping her bicep. From her expression they understood rather quickly that they were playing with fire.

"Well…" she whispered, trying to stifle a smile. "I suppose there is time for one short battle before the festival starts."

With a flick of her wrist, she produced an Ultraball as though from thin air. She moved it between her fingers with ease, while the tension in the room rose with every second that passed.

At least until Carolina's voice broke through from the other room, startling them all:

"If you're gonna battle then go do it outside, reckless girl! I will not have you wreck my house again!"

Cynthia was out the door before her grandmother had finished speaking, clear horror in her face. They followed, slightly confused but eager to battle.