Lucas couldn't help but make a face as he looked down at the screen of his Poketch, Barry's message clearly displayed on it.

Hey Lucas!

Really sorry we couldn't hang out today. I'd love to go out and get something to drink and eat and stuff but Niss isn't feeling too great right now. Probably caught a cold or something on the trip here.

Anyway I hope you have a nice day! We'll talk to you as soon as Niss gets better and we'll go check out that cool library, I promise. Take care!

He let out a sigh, his shoulders dropping ever so slightly. Even though his stay on Canalave had been quite pleasant so far, he still had been looking forward to hanging out with Barry and Inyssa once more. There was so much he wanted to tell them, so much he wanted to ask. And the idea of visiting Sinnoh's most famous library with them… Well, it was honestly a dream come true.

A dream which would have to wait, he reminded himself. He lowered his Poketch and tried to contain another sigh.

I'll just go visit the professor after this, then.

"I'm guessing they're a no-show, then," said Saturn across the cafe's table, trying to form a soothing smile. "That's too bad. I was looking forward to meeting them."

He returned the smile and took one of the many scones from the little straw tray on top of the table, biting half of it off. The taste was salty and –much like pretty much everything in Canalave– reminded him of the sea, which itself sat less than a street away from the humble café they'd decided to have afternoon snacks at. A gentle breeze passed through the street, carrying out the characteristic chill of the beginning of winter along with the not so distant sounds of people talking and screaming in the harbor market down-street.

"I'm sure you'll get to meet them someday," he said after a few seconds. "They're really cool and passionate, like you."

"You praise me too much. I'm just trying to do my job."

"Yeah, which is helping people," Lucas reminded him, quirking his head to the side with a smile.

Saturn's expression froze for a second, the lightness in his eyes becoming opaque. He gulped and hurried to take a sip from his cup of coffee to hide the fact that he had dropped his smile.

"Of course…"

Lucas couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly in confusion. Was that… guilt on his face? No, he was just being paranoid as usual. The last thing he needed was to doubt his crush–

Friend! He yelled inside his own mind, feeling heat rise to his face. Just friend!

…To doubt his friend when he finally freed up enough time in his busy schedule to visit him.

"Anyway…" He let out the word slowly, trying to think of what to say. "How's work going? I'm really glad you could come visit even though you're so busy."

"It's the least I can do," replied Saturn. "You've been an invaluable source of conversation these past few weeks, especially due to the kind of people I've been forced to deal with recently." His tone turned sour as he finished his sentence. He slouched forward and let his cheek rest on his palm. "Which brings you to your first question, I suppose."

"Rough week?" asked Lucas. "I'm sorry…"

"It's not your fault, Lucas. Don't worry about it." He reached across the table to give him a pat on the back of the hand. Lucas felt as if a live wire had touched the butterflies in his stomach. "It's just that I don't think some of my new coworkers have… the right attitude regarding our goals and ideals, I suppose."

Lucas nodded absentmindedly, trying to think of something to say. He was familiar with the feeling, of course. Having been one of the only kids in his class who wished to follow in a professor's footsteps instead of a trainer's… it made conversation difficult with those who found him to be such an oddity.

"I guess that's bound to happen when an ideological group keeps growing in size." Lucas looked down and placed a finger under his chin, thoughtful. "Still, as long as the majority keeps true to the original message, there shouldn't be much to worry about."

"Y-yes… you're right."

Saturn's face scrunched up as if he'd smelled something unpleasant, and his fingers began to nervously interlace with each other. There was a short pause.

"Lucas…" The caution in his voice made Lucas immediately anxious. "What… do you think of trying to help people even if they don't want you to? You know… sometimes it seems that you have to make a few sacrifices to bring the greatest amount of happiness to the greatest amount of people, don't you think?"

Saying he was caught off-guard would've been putting it lightly. Where had such a question even come from? And why did Saturn look so distressed over it?

Despite his worry, he did his best to think of a satisfying answer.

"Most people would agree that sometimes you have to make sacrifices to make life better for everyone…" He paused to breathe. "But… judging from history, most of the important people who said that were mostly trying to justify themselves for taking the easy path instead of working hard to achieve their goal without having to hurt anyone. I feel like there's a very narrow line separating necessary sacrifices from malicious laziness."

Saturn gave a small, almost unnoticeable nod. "You have a point. Though… determining exactly where that line lies can be more than a little difficult."

Lucas nodded slowly, deep in thought. "I'm sure it's different for everyone, but for me that line would lie just where selflessness is."

"S-selflessness?"

"Yeah. I feel like… unless you're ready to sacrifice yourself and your own happiness for your cause, you have no right to sacrifice anyone else's either, no matter what." There was a short silence, and then he simply shrugged. "At least that's what I think."

Saturn said nothing for a few seconds, the brightness of the sun reflected on the sudden paleness of his face. He leaned back into his chair, straight as a plank. His expression was as if someone had stabbed him

"Yes… I suppose you're right."

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

"Are you sure you don't want me to check up on your friend?"

Barry froze at the sound of the nurse's voice behind him, a half eaten chocolate brownie resting on his hand. He swallowed and looked over his shoulder. All around the Pokemon Center lobby, other trainers made not so subtle attempts to spy on their conversation, their eyes full of curiosity.

"Y-you mean Niss?" he asked, almost whispering.

"Yes, the ashen-haired girl who came here with you last night," the nurse clarified. "I know you told me she was just a little nauseous but she's been sleeping for more than sixteen hours now. I… worry that she might've caught something dangerous."

Barry was a bundle of nerves at the moment, so it took him a few seconds to properly respond. Every muscle in his body felt brimming with energy which he couldn't dispose of because he absolutely refused to leave the Pokemon Center while Niss remained in her room, miserable and wanting to be left alone. He'd tried to check up on her a few times, only to be told that she was completely fine –words spoken through tears, he realized at the moment and had to control himself not to explode in rage toward Shadi– and that he shouldn't worry about her. A suggestion he considered for half a second before promptly ignoring it.

You think you're worried, lady? He thought, looking up at the nurse. I haven't stress-eaten this badly since that week when I had to prepare for finals.

"She… she'll be fine." He forced himself to sound cheerful, a half-drawn smile on his face. "Niss is super strong so a bit of sea-sickness ain't gonna keep her down for long, trust me."

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The nurse's lips formed a fine line. "Are you sure about that? I don't meant to doubt you, I'm sure you know her better than anyone else but…"

"It's fine. I'll go check on her!" He hurried up to say. "Look I'm sure she'll be super hungry since she hasn't eaten lunch yet and it's almost afternoon, so I'll just bring some food to her and see how she's doing in the meantime. Still, I'm sure she'll be fine…"

Then, just as he said that, Barry made his eyes flash golden. Just for a moment, enough for the nurse to consider it simply a trick of the light or the stress of her job making her see things. In that second, he stole what little bit of calmness and contentment there was in him and let the breeze of Mesprit's power carry it over to her. There was a pause as her eyes dulled and her posture relaxed, tense shoulders lowering and an easy smile forming on her lips.

"I see… I guess you're right," said the nurse. "I'll leave it to you, then."

Barry felt his stomach drop as he saw her turn around and walk toward the counter with an aloof, somewhat unfocused look on her eyes. Then, unprompted as always, Mesprit's voice rang inside his head.

"Out of the mouth comes evil, as they say." Despite it being toneless, Barry noticed a bit of surprise in its voice. "As impressed as I am with your progress in learning how to use my powers, I never pegged you as someone who would use them to manipulate others."

"I'm not happy either," he said, a bitter taste in his mouth. "But… Niss wanted to be left alone and I want to respect her decision."

"If leaving a friend to her own devices right after she suffers a severe blow to her psyche is what you people consider 'respect', then it seems I really am out of touch with how you humans operate."

"Oh can it, like you know anything about us," he whispered, almost hissing.

"I still don't know what that expression means. Telling someone to 'can it' is a curious thing to say, don't you think?"

"I said can it! Look… I trust Niss, okay?" As he spoke he tried his best to hide himself from the other trainers in the room, lest they think he was talking to no one. "I've been her friend for a long time and I know when she needs me to help her and when she needs to be alone. I know she'll get through this, and I'll be super happy to help her once she wants me to. But for now I think I need to let her be."

"Trust, you say? Is that why you can't stop looking over to the hallway leading to her room?"

Barry closed his eyes and breathed in, trying to keep his irritation in check. Who knew living with a legendary Pokemon inside his head would be so freaking annoying.

"I'll just… go give her some food and ask how she's doing." He pushed himself off the chair. "But that's it. I trust Niss and unless I see that she wants me with her or that she's doing something stupid, I'll let her be for now."

"If you say so."

Trying to ignore the uneasy feeling in his gut, Barry hurried over to the cafeteria and grabbed a meal for Niss. He made sure to pick something she'd like, with lots of meat and veggies so that she could get all the energy she needed. Then he made his way through the dark hallway to the last door on the right, where Niss' room was. As he approached he slowly, tentatively, reached out to the doorknob. A knot formed in his throat.

The door opened violently. He took a step back and looked straight ahead at the sill, where Niss now stood. She was fully dressed, including the Poketch on her left wrist and the belt full of Pokeballs around her waist. And her face…

"N-Niss…"

Her face was pale and hardened, like a cruelly chiseled slab of marble. The bags under her eyes had exacerbated to an unhealthy degree, framing a gaze so empty and distant that Barry felt a chill just looking at her. When she looked up, she barely seemed to notice him.

"Hey," she said. Her voice cracked, as if she hadn't used it in a long time. "Is everything okay?"

A part of him wanted to smile at the absurdity of the question.

"That's… what I was gonna ask too. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

As offended as he should have been by such a blatant lie, the concern inside him left no room for any other emotions. Niss… something about her looked wrong. It wasn't just sadness or apathy. She seemed… out of it, as if only part of her were aware of what she was saying and doing. If she was feeling any kind of intense emotion, he couldn't pick up on it even with Mesprit's power.

"Well, I brought you some food." He smiled and lifted the tray to show it to her. She didn't look down. "You should totally eat something. Here, I already had a table reserved over th–"

"I'm not hungry," she cut him off. Her voice was weak and quiet as a whisper. "And… I have to go, anyway. Sorry."

She walked past him, not even giving him a chance to reply. Eyes widened in confusion, it took Barry a moment to react and follow behind her with the tray still on his hands, concern quickly growing into fear.

"N-Niss! Hey, Niss!" It wasn't easy, trying to follow her while avoiding letting the food on the tray fall to the floor. "What's going on? Where are you going?"

"Outskirts of the city," she said, already halfway toward the door. "I've been slacking off on training my team. You're free to come with if you want to."

"What?" He let out, tone incredulous. "Niss, you were in bed for like twenty hours! Come on, let's go to our table and we can eat and talk about…"

She stopped so abruptly that Barry almost crashed into her, food tray and all. With one hand on the handle of the double glass door, she looked over her shoulder and set her empty gaze on him. A powerful shiver washed over him, every alarm bell in his head ringing at full blast. There was something seriously wrong with the way her eyes looked.

"I'm sorry, Barry."

"H-huh?" He gulped, voice thin. "For what?"

"You were probably very worried. I should've gotten over myself sooner and assured you that I was fine." For the first time that morning, an emotion was reflected on her face: regret. "But I'm fine now. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

"There… there's no way I can't worry." He tried to form a smile, though the gesture died halfway on his lips. "What's gotten into you Niss? Why do you wanna go train right now?"

"Because Shadi was right."

Barry opened his mouth, but it took him a few seconds to get the words past the knot suddenly blocking his throat.

"W-what?"

Niss turned to face the door once more, seemingly lost in thought. She didn't seem to notice that pretty much everyone in the Pokemon Center had stopped their conversation to turn and look at them. Though perhaps she did, and simply did not care.

"What she told me before she left. She was right," said Niss. "I got too complacent. When I was chosen by Uxie I thought that I could become a hero like those from legend, but it was presumptuous of me to think that. I wanted the title without actually putting in any work myself. Like a kid wearing a costume."

"That's not true." Barry's voice was barely audible. "Niss, you work harder than anyone else-"

"Not hard enough," she cut him off. "Shadi was right; I haven't been taking this seriously. Every moment, every choice, it all has to be for my goal." The hand not pressed against the door curled into a fist. "Those at the top didn't get there by indulging themselves but by sacrificing everything for what they wanted. Unless I'm willing to do the same, I'm never going to reach them."

"T-that's insane. Niss, you can't go thinking like that! You have to worry about yourself and-"

"No, I don't. I have to worry about my goal, and that's it." He could see her trying to force herself to sound fierce, but there was no real anger inside her, no spark or fire. "I'll crawl my way up to the spot of Champion if I have to, and I'll prove my sister wrong. And if it turns out I'm not good enough and I end up failing or worse… well, that'd be it. No point in lamenting the inevitable."

Without saying another word she opened the door and slipped through it, leaving an utterly baffled Barry behind. He stood frozen for a moment, until Mesprit's voice brought him back to reality.

"Well… that was something."

A sudden wave of panic washed over him as he finally processed the weight of the situation.

"I… I have to go help her," he said. "Something's not right, I think she's still sick or in shock or… I don't know but I gotta go get her."

"What happened to 'letting her be'?"

"I think we're way past that now," he replied. "Did you hear what she say? Why isn't Uxie stopping her? Can you go talk to it and help it convince her to…"

"I'm afraid I can't," said Mesprit. Then, just as Barry was about to protest, it added: "You see, I can't sense Uxie at all within the girl."

"What!?" He blurted out. Okay, the trainers around him were definitely looking at him funny now. "What do you mean? Did Uxie left her or…?"

"No, no, I don't believe that's the case. I'm guessing their link was simply severed for the moment."

"Which means…?"

"Normally, it takes a long time for the bond between us and the human of our choosing to grow strong enough for us to talk to and lend our powers to them. As evidenced by our fruitful companionship." There was a hint of sarcasm in its last words, but Barry decided to ignore it. "However, the bond between Uxie and that girl was formed abruptly and haphazardly, which made it weak. And since said bond is entirely formed within her mind, it would not be absurd to believe that the psychological blow that girl took could have severed her bond with Uxie."

Barry could barely pay attention to such a barrage of information through the restlessness shaking every inch of his body. Still, he tried his best to understand. "And… can that like, be fixed? Can we do something about it?"

"The bond will restore itself as long as that girl manages to trigger another awakening, much like the one you went through when you first heard my voice," said Mesprit. "However, unless she breaks out of that frightening mental state she's in, I don't see it happening."

Barry didn't need to be told anything else. Taking in a deep breath and centering himself like his mom had taught him to, he found the calmness and resolve within his self and let them take hold of him.

Then, without saying a word he approached the nearest table –where two young girls sat, looking at him with a freaked-out look on their faces– and placed the tray of food in between them. His expression was unreadable.

"Meat and veggies," he said, tone completely serious. "It's yours now. Enjoy."

He was out the door only a few seconds after, brow furrowed and resolve written all over his face. Niss' figure could be seen a couple streets ahead.

"So you really are doing this, huh." Mesprit's voice rang inside his head once more. "And what exactly are you planning? Your friend doesn't seem like she would be convinced by words alone."

"I don't care what I have to do," he replied. "Niss isn't okay and I'm gonna help her whether she wants it or not."

"Somewhat different from your previous stance, no?"

Barry bit his lip, hands balling into fists. He remembered what Sanbica had told him during that party, how she had described his guardian star.

They are said to be some of the most oblivious creatures in existence, constantly distracted by whatever catches their interest and unable to see the plight of others in front of them.

He gulped, raised his chin and continued to follow Niss. He, too, had someone to prove wrong.

"Niss has always been there to stop me from doing stupid stuff," he told Mesprit. With a flick of his wrist, he produced a Pokeball on his right hand and held it tightly. "It's time I return the favor."