Reiko sat slumped against a tree, staring intently at her own hand. A cold, sharp wind ran through that part of the forest, carrying thick waves of mist with it. They seemed to be converging in the small open space around the house. Swirling, hiding her from the rest of the group. She was thankful for that.

Her fingers curled inwards, and immediately her nerve shot up to her elbow, making her wince. The pain lasted for less than a second. Still, it felt as though her nerves had been brought to a boil.

Just like her entire body, really.

She closed her eyes and exhaled, her breath burning through the cold mists like they weren't there. The freezing weather did little to temper the heat of her skin. It was beginning to sting more than just a little; most people would have come to the conclusion that they'd caught a fever, but she knew better.

Her eyes moved down to the sixth Pokeball attached to her belt; the one she hadn't opened once ever since setting foot in Sinnoh. Its appearance was unlike any other. As she moved her hand to hover over it, she could feel a tremendous heat emanating from it, as though it were a furnace. She frowned.

"I know. I'm sorry." She tried her best to imbue her voice with a hint of regret. "Just kinda… slipped in the heat of the moment. I promise it won't happen ag…" She paused, eyes going wide. "Heat of the moment… fuck me, I wish I could make a pun that bad on purpose."

She laughed with what little strength she had left, her entire body hurting as she did. God, she needed some sleep. Dawn wasn't far away, but she didn't care. She'd sleep through the day if she had to.

"Hey, Reiko!"

Reiko lifted her chin, a lazy grumble caught in her throat. What did Palmer want? Didn't he see her sulking?

Probably not, considering all the mist.

"Percy and Argenta are back! Cynthia told us to gather in front of the house to discuss some things!"

She pushed herself up to her feet and headed over to him, though not without her fair share of grumbling. None of them said anything for a while as they walked. The outline of the house appeared from behind the mists, about a hundred yards away, and she noticed the vague silhouettes of three people near the front door.

A tired smile formed on her lips. At least Percy seemed to be okay.

"So, Reiko…" Palmer's voice took her out of her stupor. He sounded doubtful. "Are you feeling okay after tonight? I don't mean to intrude, it's just…"

He left the sentence hanging. Reiko glanced at him with furrowed brows and tried to draw the will to be angry at him, but couldn't. She was too tired. And besides, it didn't seem to come as easily to her as it had done the day before.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, voice hoarse. "Just tired. Wasn't an easy fight."

"I can imagine…"

Reiko dug her hands into her pockets, feeling the tips of her fingers sting from the heat. What a bother. This and having to owe someone like Palmer and… ugh. Why couldn't things be simpler? Why was everything so goddamn complicated here in Sinnoh? Now she had no choice but to…

"Hey…" She spat that word out, and waited a few seconds to keep talking, feeling like her tongue was tied into a knot. "…Thanks. For saving my ass back there."

A weird sound of surprise came out of Palmer's mouth. He turned to look at her, eyes going wide, and Reiko unconsciously clenched her teeth.

"Don't get the wrong idea. This doesn't make us friends," she snarled, starting to walk faster. "It just means I owe you one."

She quickened her pace and soon found herself with something else to occupy her mind. Percy, Argenta and Cynthia stood near each other in front of the house, talking amongst themselves until they arrived. Percy turned to Reiko and a tiny smile formed on his face, soon replaced by a frown as he saw the state she was in.

"What…?" He hurried toward her, grabbing her hand with his. "Reiko, what the hell happened? You're…"

"It's okay, I'll tell you later," she hurried to say. "I'm fine, trust me."

To emphasize her words she placed a hand against his cheek and smiled, even though the mere act of raising her hand was painful. He didn't need to worry. Not because of her stupidity.

"How did it go on your side?" she asked, wanting to change the topic. "You look unharmed."

Percy's gaze went up and he shook his head in a 'so-so' manner. "It was… weird, but at least we found something."

Argenta addressed them, eyes closed and arms still crossed. "This Percy boy and I had quite the productive night indeed. I must admit that I am impressed. There seems to be more than hot air inside that head of his."

"Hey!"

"I told you, he's smart as shit," Reiko smiled. "You probably weirded him out a lot but still, thanks for bringing him back safely."

"Heh. Safe, you say? An amusing thought." Argenta stuck one of her legs out and forward, half her face covered by her hand as she posed. "Though I may have been skilled enough to keep his body from harm, none of us are safe from the burning, stygian touch of the truth. For you see, we have discovered something most w–"

"Reiko."

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Cynthia's voice was low, yet chilling enough to make even Argenta shudder under its weight, shutting her up. All four trainers turned toward the Champion. Reiko gulped, feeling the heat under her skin flare up at the sight of those stormy grey eyes.

"Palmer was kind enough to tell me what occurred during your mission." There was no hint of anger in her voice nor her expression, but everyone could feel the atmosphere around them tensing up. "Would you like to… explain yourself?"

Reiko had to stop herself from leaning back. "W-why should I do that? I'm sure he already told you everything you needed to know."

"I would like to hear your justification."

Even squinting she couldn't decide whether Cynthia was actually mad or just fucking with her. It wasn't often she ran into someone so hard to read. What was her deal?

"I don't see what the problem is," she said. "We got the information we needed."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Through un-diplomatic means, if what Palmer told me is true. Those were not your orders."

A tiny gasp escaped Reiko's lips. The edges of her eyes began to crinkle as well as the bridge of her nose. She took a strong step forward, meeting eyes with the Champion.

"Orders? Is that what you think I'm doing? Following orders?" she asked, tone offended.

"Perhaps that was the wrong choice of words," Cynthia admitted. "But my point remains. This was not what we had planned."

"Who cares? I got the information, wasn't that the point?"

Cynthia frowned. "The point was not to attract unnecessary attention to ourselves. And after the events of tonight, it will not be easy to disguise our tracks and make sure Team Galactic is still unaware that we're trailing behind them."

Reiko parted her lips to reply, but no rebuttal came to her. Not surprising. Cynthia was right, after all, even if Reiko would never admit it out loud. What she'd done had been incredibly stupid and risky, especially after she'd already secured the information they needed in a safer, though less ethical way.

She bit her lower lip, breathed in and replied.

"I just did what I thought was right."

The grass rustled behind them as Argenta took a step forward.

"An admirable way of living, child. However, there are times when one must see beyond the thick mists of our immediate situation, and focus on the bright and endless canvas of our future." For once, the woman's voice lost its loud and bombastic tone, sounding somewhat thinner and calm. "Follow the ramifications of your choices, just as a drop of rain follows the branches of a tree. The end…"

"Don't say it!" Reiko snapped back, turning so fast toward her that her neck clicked. "Don't say that the end has to justify the means!"

Argenta seemed startled by her sudden reaction. The forest grew silent with the exception of the low whispers of the wind around them.

"Fuck that… fuck that to hell. If you think I'm gonna follow orders that I hate just because it might help me out later…" Her voice thinned as she spoke. "That's how all this started. I'm not gonna do the same thing that you did to my region."

Palmer was the first to look away after she said that, closely followed by Argenta, the hints of shame crossing her expression for the first time. Cynthia, however, did no such thing. She stared straight at Reiko, expressionless, for what felt like an entire minute.

Then the corners of her thin lips perked up.

"It never ceases to amaze me, you know?"

Reiko blinked, confused. "What?"

"That, despite your clear hatred of us Sinnohans and what we've done, you're always the first to jump and decide whether someone deserves to live or die."

Her body moved instinctively, fueled only by the sudden burst of anger that had exploded in her chest. Her fist cut through the mist as though propelled by a piston. A crack was heard as her knuckles clashed against the wall right next to Cynthia's face, a few spiderweb-like cracks growing from the point of impact.

The strand of hair covering Cynthia's eye moved a bit, though she didn't react in the slightest to the punch. The same couldn't be said for everyone else.

"Reiko!"

"Child, you shouldn't…"

"…gotta calm down, she didn't mean…"

She pushed her other hand back, showing them her palm. They stopped on their tracks. Cynthia, who hadn't moved an inch yet, closed her eyes and formed another one of her infuriating smiles.

"Was that… meant to intimidate me?" she asked.

"No. It was a warning," she snarled back. "Just because you think I'm following you doesn't mean I won't kick your ass if I feel like it. And just because you think we're all buddies now doesn't mean I forgot about everything you and Palmer did."

Cynthia shrugged in the most nonchalant way possible. "I doubt you would either way, considering your… hot-blooded nature."

"Heh. You think you're funny, don't you?"

"I've been known to make people laugh with relative ease, so..."

Reiko shook her head and let out a small chuckle. Her fingers uncurled as she wound her arm back, small bits of concrete falling to the ground and a couple drops of blood staining her knuckles.

She glared at Cynthia. "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm doing this to set things right; even if I'm forced to work with you, I still hate you. If I had to throw all three of you to the Houndooms to get the justice we deserve, I'd do it without a second thought."

Part of her didn't want to say those words. Wanted to, at the very least, try to contain herself and make the best out of the situation. But that flame… its flame, burned away all the positive feelings she'd recently developed toward this group, leaving behind only her anger and bitterness.

She couldn't trust these people. No matter how kind they were to her.

Everything seemed to wane for a moment as Cynthia closed her eyes and breathed in. The mists slowed down to a crawl. The wind all but stopped entirely. Then Reiko saw as the Champion's shoulders dropped slightly and a smile of satisfaction formed on her lips.

"Your spirit…" she said, barely above a whisper. "It's… scorching and painful and… wonderful." Reiko felt a strong shiver down her spine as Cynthia opened her eyes, the grey of her eyes flashing ominously. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, Reiko."

Reiko startled back, feeling herself lose her footing as the anger inside her vanished in an instant. No words came to her. What even…?

"That Pokeball of yours…"

She jumped slightly, a jolt of fear running down her back. Cynthia's gaze was set on her belt, a curious look on her face.

"W-what?"

"The one at the end of your belt. The one you haven't opened ever since we met," she clarified. "How... odd, it looks. I don't think I've ever seen one like it before."

Panic began to pump through her body with each beat of her heart, and Reiko couldn't believe that just a second before she felt like she had the upper hand. Her gaze went down to said Pokeball as well. How… how did she know? There was no possible way for her to know. It was ridiculous, it was…

"What's with the look on your face?" asked Cynthia, tilting her head slightly. "Have you lost your edge, Reiko? Oh, but I was having so much fun basking in the wonderful scorch of your spirit…"

That was enough. Reiko turned around as though her body forced her to and the tense atmosphere around them vanished. She gulped, feeling a drop of sweat falling down her face.

"I… I'm not gonna waste my time with you."

She started walking away, wanting nothing more than to get as far away from Cynthia as possible. Unfortunately, she only made it halfway to the door before the Champion's voice made it to her again.

"Before you head off, I wanted to inform you…" The smile in her voice could be heard, even though she wasn't looking at her. "Percy and Argenta were kind enough to find a clue to a potential Galactic grunt hideout near Solaceon. Even though, thanks to you and Palmer, we already know the location of their next re-supply trip, I would still like to check this out just to make sure we're covering all our bases."

Reiko looked over her shoulder, still feeling like her stomach had been pierced by something cold.

"Okay…"

Cynthia smiled. "That is all. We leave tomorrow night, so all of you, make sure you get plenty of rest, okay?"