Following the end of the Moonless Night, over half a year passed in what felt like the blink of an eye.
An official statement was made by Lucian Dusk on that fateful day, following what many would soon discover was almost the end of the world. Together with his fellow Elite Four members, he laid out the entirety of the events leading to the catastrophe, sparing little if any details, and revealing the identity of those who had truly saved the region, and the entire world, from destruction.
It was not a day for celebrating. The chaos that followed the truth was swift and wide-spread. Foreseeing this, Lucian made an even bolder declaration: that in four months, during the summer solstice, an official referendum would be held all across Sinnoh, outlying the terms for the possible disbandment of the Association as a whole, as well as the long-coming separation of League and state. It was a political as well as placating move, a way for Lucian to see Sinnoh through the tumultuous months ahead. If anything, it brought on even more chaos, but it gave the Association the time it needed to put out fires all across the region, as well as prepare for its own disbandment in advance, instead of being taken out without warning.
Those dissatisfied with the Association, while initially distrustful, eventually accepted the idea of a referendum, eager to have their voices heard. And, in order to keep conflict to a minimum during those months of waiting, those Association-bound trainers against the referendum were given assignments that dragged them far away from the spotlight.
Meanwhile, with the help of an ex-Gym leader, a couple of now famous foreigners and a very generous patronage from a certain Kalosian family, every ranger base in Sinnoh resumed operations. In the absence of the League challenge, the influx of rookie trainer recruits, as well as the hard work of many currently existing expert rangers, helped immensely in quelling incident after incident all across the region during the coming months.
However, not all news were hopeful.
While the promise of change helped diminish the worst of the people's anger, the truth of the Association's incompetence during the crisis spurned even greater criticism, both local and from abroad. Efforts were made to placate them. In what was both a long-time coming announcement and a sacrificial lamb play, the lorekeeper and ex-Champion of Sinnoh, Cynthia Artemis, was put on trial for her irresponsible actions during the Team Galactic crisis. She managed to avoid arrest, but it was decided she would never hold a position of power in the League or government again. Cynthia accepted her sentence, and chose to instead turn to her original role of lorekeeper, while also helping the rangers and the Association from afar.
Similarly, Saturn, the only remaining high-ranking member of Team Galactic, had his sentence greatly reduced due to his role in stopping the Moonless Night. He was placed on a three-year long house arrest, and sentenced to community service working for Professor Rowan.
Shadi Dawn was not as lucky. Though deals between her and Lucian were made, nothing could hide her involvement with Team Galactic, nor her hand in the deaths of Palmer Paladino and Argenta Dusk. The length of her sentence was yet to be decided, but for the time being she remained incarcerated in Jubilife's correctional facility. Petitions were made to move her to Stark Island's high-security prison, but the appeal was dismissed, citing that without Darkrai or her Pokemon, she posed little threat.
Yet the swift sentencing of those responsible for the crisis did little to solve the great pressure placed upon Sinnoh by foreign powers. While Lucian's announcement put a sizeable dent in local industries' shares, it wreaked havoc on the foreign companies which had come to rely on Sinnoh's technologic, mining and metallurgic sectors, causing them to lose hundreds of millions over the course of only a few weeks. Some of these companies included Kanto's Silph Co., Unova's Driftveil Mining Company and Stone Ironworks, a distant sibling company to Hoenn's technological conglomerate, Devon. The first two were eventually placated with the promise of future collaborations, and a bit of money delivered under the table. The third, however, wanted much more than that.
The company's CEO, Rixia Stone, as well as the members of Hoenn's diet backing her up, chastised the Association for their role in the crisis, and both to protect their investments and get a solid foothold on Sinnoh's future political landscape, they demanded astronomical reparations. And, while not outright stating it, did imply that refusing might lead to armed conflict.
The reparations proposed were so high, however, that the Association had no hope of paying them. And Miss. Stone seemed to count on it. After only a week, she personally contacted Lucian and the head of Sunyshore's Institute of Technology, and offered to 'graciously' drop the proposed reparations in lieu of being granted full control of one of the SIT's five development divisions. This was proposed in tandem with the promise a significant amount of foreign capital flowing into the city from Hoenn, which she described as an 'investment'.
Already fearing that Sunyshore's status as an S.E.Z. might eventually lead to the city making a bid for independence, this proposal worried Lucian even more. But with no other choice, he and the rest of the Association were forced to negotiate. The details of their deal, however, remained unknown to the public.
Eventually, the fated day of the referendum came. And on that warm summer solstice, the people of Sinnoh made their voice heard, and through their voting the Association was officially disbanded. The League challenge would soon follow with reforms of its own. The requisites, both financial and academic, for becoming a trainer were reasonably loosened, while at the same time reducing the influence and importance of said trainers as a whole in the political landscape.
The governmental system put in place was more akin to Kanto's and Hoenn's, with a house of representatives instead of a single ruler, and a separate association which would be in charge of the League challenge, the supervision of rangers and the protection of Sinnoh's fauna.
So were born the National Diet of Sinnoh, and the Unified Region's League.
In a show of good faith, Lucian officially stepped down as an Elite Four member, and became a full-time speaker of the diet, working tirelessly during the following months to smooth over the chaotic transition. His previous spot was soon taken by one of Sinnoh's top aspiring trainers, Mikan Kondo, also known as the 'Sinister Rouge'. The role of Champion, on the other hand, would be left available for the first person who beat the Elite Four once the League challenge resumed during the coming months. Replacements still needed to be found for Oreburgh and Veilstone's Gyms after all, as the previous leaders had resigned.
Additionally, a proposal was made by Snowpoint's Gym leader to change the date of the region's long-held Festival of the Moon, holding two of them a year instead, one during the summer solstice, and one six months after, on the dawn of winter. The proposal drew overwhelming support from the populace. With the truth of the Moonless Night revealed, Sinnoh at long last became aware of the Lunar Duo's true nature, as well as their selfless sacrifice and essential role in stopping the end of the world. Statues of Darkrai were built everywhere there was one of his counterpart, and it was decided that the winter's festival would be dedicated to him, just as summer's was dedicated to Cresselia. Temples were also erected on Fullmoon and Newmoon island in order to house the two Lunar Wings that were their remains.
And, while travel to said islands was expressly forbidden, it didn't stop some people from visiting nonetheless, regardless of their position.
Soon, summer gave way to autumn, and just as she had done exactly a year before, a certain young trainer, now known all across Sinnoh as Uxie's chosen hero, woke up to meet the eventful day ahead. She had done little but rest and recover for the past six months, but this was no time for sleeping. Preparations had to be made, and people needed to be visited.
It was, after all, the day of her mother's wedding.
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Inyssa woke up to the warm, minty scent of autumn wafting in from the ajar window. Her eyelids parted lazily, blinking a few times in hazy confusion, until her mind finally came to the forefront, greeting her for a new day.
"…Hm…"
The usual grumbles rose up her throat like the purr of a Glameow and, still wrapped up like a blanket burrito, she turned to look at the other side of the bed, unconsciously rubbing her cheek on the pillow. Seeing Barry still asleep next to her was what finally snapped her out of her sleepiness. She opened her eyes fully and blinked a few times, then turned around to grab the Poketch resting on the little stand next to her.
8:49
Huh… is this the first time I wake up before the alarm goes off?
What's more, she actually felt rested. Not well, perhaps, but rested, and that was leaps and bounds better than any other morning before. Had she… had she actually slept 8 hours this time? It was hard to believe, but she didn't remember waking up at any point during the night.
"You didn't," Uxie said inside her mind, a smile clear on its voice. "Good morning, Inyssa."
She grumbled again in response, rubbing her face against the pillow a few times for good measure.
Maybe there was a method to Barry's madness after all. A few months ago, he told Inyssa he'd help in her recovery the only way he could; by making sure she lived as healthily as possible so she'd get better faster. That included waking up early, eating plenty of nutritious food and working out with him thrice a week.
Inyssa had met the idea with a long, weary sigh. Both because of the daunting task ahead, and because Barry had the gall to say that was 'the only way he could help', when just his presence was doing more for her than anything else ever could. But, because she loved him dearly and whatever, she shrugged and figured she'd give it a try.
Seeing it finally start to bear fruit was reassuring, but also irritating. It meant it worked. Which also meant she had to work out more.
"Ugh…"
Not today, though. Weekends were her free days, which was good because this particular Sunday was busy enough as is, without her having to fit in exercise into it.
With some effort, and a lot of complaining by her muscles, she unrolled herself from her blankets and rolled out of bed, rising to her feet with stretched arms and a big yawn. She let her arms fall to the side then gave her stomach a lazy scratch, looking over her shoulder. Yup, Barry was still very much asleep. A bomb could go off and it wouldn't faze him, but that was okay today. She figured she'd go on her errands alone today.
Not feeling like crawling through the bed again just to give him a kiss, she kissed the tip of her fingers instead and sent the smooch flying toward him. Then, with that done, she turned around and changed into something light. A pair of dark jeans, boots, a black button-up and a red jacket over it just in case it turned chilly. She grabbed a scrunchie from the nearest stand and tied up her hair into a ponytail, then finally grabbed her belt full of empty pokeballs and tied it around her waist.
Before going downstairs however, she walked over to the small ajar window on the other side of the room, under which slept her massive Luxray, Kuro. She stepped over him and placed a hand against the glass. It was warm from the day's young sunlight. She smiled.
Then, she knelt down and patted the Luxray on the head. Kuro grumbled and rolled over, blinking lazily as a purr ran up his body. Inyssa rolled her eyes and started rubbing his belly, making him purr even more.
"Come on, big boy. Got a big day ahead of us," she said. "Let's go wake up everyone else."
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After washing her face and brushing her teeth, Inyssa walked downstairs to the sound of some quiz show or other coming out of the T.V. She frowned, confused, until she reached the bottom and saw none other than Johnny sitting on the couch, remote in hand, staring at the screen like it was the most amazing thing he'd ever seen. A laugh left her lips. She figured T.V. would be right up his alley.
"Good morning, everyone."
At the sound of her voice, Johnny jumped out of the couch and started awkwardly waddling toward her, mouth open in a big grin, and also another pair of steps was heard from the kitchen. Bret only popped out the corner of the doorsill to wave at her before going back to his food, but Shadi let out a happy screech and threw herself at her, wrapping her arms around her body carefully so as to not mess up her coat. Inyssa broke into happy laughter and hugged the Kricketune tight, spinning her around for a second before letting her down again.
"Had a good breakfast, girl? I was just gonna go get something too." Can't take my pills on an empty stomach, unfortunately. "We'll be going in a sec, just let me get some munch."
There was, as usual, an unwilling stab of panic in her stomach as she crossed the threshold, the green of her eyes flashing golden for a moment, and the sight before her turning into that of the dark, dreary room that was so engraved in her memories.
"Hh!"
But then she blinked, and it was gone. It was the same room, the same kitchen, yet the difference was like night and day. The blinds behind the sink were parted, the dish rack was full of clean plates and there was a bowl of berries atop the cupboard. Vibrant winter plants decorated the kitchen, hanging from the window or resting atop the cupboards, giving the place a life that was so unlike what was in her memories.
Inyssa clutched at her chest, trying to get her harsh breathing under control. A spark of venomous anger and irritation gnashed up her throat, but she quickly swallowed it down, following her therapist's advice and relaxing her muscles, taking a deep, slow breath.
Moments of weakness do not make you weak.
She pointedly felt Shadi and Bret's eyes on her, but she tried to ignore that. After a minute, her breathing had mostly resumed to normal, and the anxious feeling crawling through her veins was… manageable, at least.
"Inyssa, do you need–"
"I'm… fine," she whispered, then forced a smile. "It's fine. But… thanks."
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Letting out a long breath, she approached the cupboard and placed her hands on either side of the bowl of berries. For a few seconds she stood there, leaning against it, thinking. Trying to force her appetite back into her stomach, which her moment of panic had so rudely chased away. It was okay. She could do this. She wouldn't listen to her mind, trying so desperately to convince her to skip breakfast, since she didn't feel hungry at the moment.
She rarely did. That was the issue.
But it was fine. She just had to remember. Remember...
And then the gold behind her eyes sparked again, but this time it felt warmer, kinder. She could almost hear Barry's voice next to her.
Anything you feel like you could eat, Niss? Anything at all? he'd ask, so patiently. Whatever it is, I'll go get it for you.
With her next breath, a smidgen of appetite came back to her, and she smiled. A kiss was in order the next time she saw him, as thanks.
Inyssa reached for an Oran berry atop the pile inside the bowl and peeled it, hurrying to eat the slices before her stomach could regret it. They were still warm from the sunlight pouring in from the window, and the nectar that gushed into her tongue as she bit into them was a wonderful mix of sour and sweet, her two favorite flavors. All of a sudden, it was like her stomach hadn't been in knots at all. She chomped down every slice and licked her fingers clean, then turned around and grabbed another one with a pang of hunger.
As her fingers touched the sun-kissed skin of the berry, she flared her eyes for only a moment and burned the memory into her mind. It was hers to share with now. Her and Barry's nightly ritual.
Times being what they were, simply keeping themselves stable was a tall order, so save for the occasional serious talk, they avoided heavy topics during the few hours they had alone to themselves. It was time Inyssa refused to waste on menial tasks, on painful memories. Instead they would hold each other and talk of small things, of crumbs of joy they'd picked up throughout the day. Their Pokemon's silliness, a stranger's smile directed their way, a particularly tasty berry they'd eaten, anything that bore remembering.
And since remembering had become Inyssa's divine task, she figured she might as well put it to good use, and gather all those little crumbs. They weren't much on their own. Dark thoughts and moments of weakness had and would continue to wash them away when they came, but every time more of them remained. Inyssa could only hope she'd someday have enough of them to make a beacon, one which might guide her home when herself was all she could rely on.
In the meantime, she would just enjoy her boyfriend's company, and the whisper-thin things they spoke of with only the moon as their witness.
Once Inyssa was done eating the berry, she washed her hands again and walked out into the living room, an less forced smile now quirking about her lips. She gave the four Pokemon around her a pat on the head each, then put all but Kuro inside their Pokeballs and walked out the door.
She stood there in her porch, one hand over her face, the bright sunlight making her squint. The warmth poured into the fabric of her clothes, and she basked in it for a minute, taking slow, careful breaths.
"Frrahr…"
A grumpy growl came from her right. Inyssa looked toward the spot in front of the line of roses surrounding the house, and found Enma sitting cross-legged there, meditating. The crown of flames upon his head was bright, but calm, swaying gently with the wind.
"Yeah, yeah. You can do that later, jackass," she whispered lovingly. "Come on, we gotta go."
And as she returned him to his ball, she heard a powerful beat of wings coming from above. Before she could react to it, she was almost thrown to the ground by Steven's powerful tackle, his wings wrapping all around her.
"Ghah! C-careful there…"
But she couldn't help but laugh, hugging the Staraptor back and giving his head a few scratches before letting him go. He fell back to the ground, tucking his wings back, and looked up at her expectantly.
"Sorry, but I'm taking Kuro this time, since it's not too far away," she said. "But I'll need you later, so keep those wings ready."
After a chirp of confirmation, she returned him to his ball, then turned toward Kuro, who waited expectantly, eyes set on the path north which led out of town. Inyssa gave him a pat on the back, then carefully placed one leg over his body, grabbing onto the fur on the back of his neck as she mounted him.
"Alright… try to take it easy. Don't wanna throw up what little breakfast I had," she whispered. "Now, to Sandge–GHHAH!"
It was like her words passed from one ear to the other. With a powerful, earth-shaking roar, Kuro took off at the speed of a bullet, crossing the town in an instant as a bright crackling trail, and broadcasting Inyssa's scream all throughout his path.
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Lucas couldn't believe he'd forgotten about a trainer appointment yet again.
Chalk it up to this darn scatterbrain of mine, he thought, panicked as he ran through the lab to answer the ring from the front lobby. Those dissertations from Devon's new self-accounting systems were so enthralling I let the time slip me by!
"I-I'm here!" he yelled as he burst through the door, out of breath. "S-sorry, I'm here. I was just… er, never mind."
Three curious pair of eyes met him as he walked to the middle of the lobby, the only part of the building that was even remotely presentable to outsiders. Sure, it was a little dusty, but nothing was out of place. Or blown up. Or scattered across the floor like his many sketches and half-written dissertations.
"A-anyway, it's… nice to meet you." He straightened up, clearing his throat, and met the three girls with a smile. "I'm Lucas, the interim professor for Sandgem's Pokemon lab. And you three must be the new trainers I was notified of, yes?"
The girl at his left seemed to shy away from those words, unconsciously hugging herself and looking away. There was something familiar about her short stature and bright pink hair. She seemed the older of the three, either 20 or close to it, and there was a certain fire and anger behind her eyes that reminded him too much of Inyssa, for better or worse.
In sharp contrast, the other two looked about as normal as you could get with new trainers. The girl on his right had a round, soft face and short auburn hair, an excited yet nervous smile on her lips. The remaining one sat on a wheelchair amidst her two friends, practically bouncing off the seat with excitement. She was thin and dark-skinned, and had a long mane of unruly black hair, only partly covered by a wool hat that seemed terribly familiar to Lucas.
"Hi! Very nice to meet you too!" said girl greeted him, so loudly it made him flinch. "Can we see our Pokemon!? Can we!? Pretty please!"
The one on the right laughed nervously and placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "I'm… sure he was getting to that. Let's be patient."
The other one said nothing, but she did roll her eyes, and her lips quirked up into a smile.
"Ah… ha, excited, I imagine," said Lucas. "I don't blame you. And don't worry, this process won't take long at all. Er…" He looked over his shoulders, and yelled past the door. "Hey! Could you get me the three Pokemon I'm supposed to give out today?"
From the other side of the lab, a muffled voice came through. "Yeah! Give me a second!"
Lucas huffed, smiling, and then turned to grab a clip note from the nearby table. He raised the first page, and peered at the second as he spoke.
"Great. In the meantime, let's see here…" He peered over the page at the girl in the middle. "Kilika Bannings, yes? You're the one that requested a specific starter."
"Yep! Though the starter thing was my sibling Simone, not me," the girl replied with a wide smile. "Such a worrywart, I swear!"
Lucas chuckled. "Well, that's family for you. Now…" He looked at the paper again. "Rory Marygold?"
"Yep," said the girl at his right.
"And… Pyxis. No last name… huh."
The pink-haired girl glared at him as though saying 'Yeah, so what!?', which shied him away from even attempting to ask. But just when he was about to continue, the door opened fully behind him and in came Saturn, holding a small tray with three Pokeballs on it.
"Here they are," he said. "Shiny and ready to serv–"
He trailed off as his eyes went over the room, then stopped as soon as he saw Pyxis. The girl's eyes went wide too, and she unconsciously took a step back.
"S…Saturn?"
"Pyxis?" he whispered. "What are you…?"
A short, awkward silence stretched between the two ex-Galactic members, though it was soon broken by Kilika's loud voice.
"What are you waiting for!?" she complained. "Come on, give us our Pokemon!"
Saturn snapped out of his trance with a few blinks. He nodded and placed the tray in front of Lucas, though his eyes didn't leave Pyxis as he did so. Swallowing, the girl's face went taut and she prepared herself for conflict, but instead he was met with a smile, and words too kind for her to deserve.
"I see… I'm glad you were able to find your path too," he said. "You'll finally be able to fulfill your dream. I'm happy."
Redness rose up Pyxis' neck to her face. She raised a hand and scratched at her cheek, avoiding his gaze. "Yeah, well… I had a lot of people help me out. You seem to be doing well for yourself too, house arrest notwithstanding."
Saturn shrugged. "I'm hanging in there. This is probably more than I deserve, to be honest," he admitted. "Oh, do say hi to Orion for me if you get the chance, alright?"
Pyxis chuckled, an annoyed smile on her lips. "Sure, if I get the chance."
Rory and Kilika looked amidst the two in confusion, until the latter finally broke the silence. "What the heck was that about?"
"Ah, nothing, nothing." Saturn took a step back and did a small bow toward the three girls. "I'll leave you to it. Sorry for the interruption."
And without further comments, he knelt to give Lucas a peck on the cheek and then left through the door behind him, leaving a pair of very confused girls behind, and an awkward-looking Pyxis to boot. After a few seconds of silence, Kilika spoke again.
"So… we getting our Pokemon now?"
"Ah, y-yes! Sorry, yes, here…" Lucas hurried to grab the tray, face red like the shell of a Scizor. "So this one's yours…"
He gave a Pokeball to each of the girls, as well as an accompanying trainer license and Pokédex, as was customary. And it was hard to overstate just how giddy they looked. Even Pyxis, with that usual air of gloom hanging about her, still had a hard time containing a smile.
But before they could open them and see their starters, the doorbell went off again. All four of them turned to look as someone unceremoniously opened the door and waltzed right in, already in the middle of a sentence.
"Hello? Anyone here? I'm looking for three girls and a dumb nerd in a lab coat, I don't know if I got the right addr…"
Inyssa stopped on the doormat, and her tired smile widened as she saw the four of them there. The girls' reaction was immediate. Rory and Kilika let out yelps of surprise and hurried to meet her with smiles on their faces, while Pyxis let out a long, annoyed grunt and folded her arms.
"Niss!" Kilika yelled, giddy. "Hi!"
"Inyssa! It's good to see you," Rory said.
"Ha. Nice, I didn't miss you after all." Inyssa breathed a sigh of relief. "Hi, Rory. You too, chickadee. And Pyxis, of course."
Pyxis scoffed. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Inyssa took off her jacket and hung it in the coat rack as she replied. "What do you think? Simone asked me to see the three of you off."
Judging by her reaction, it was the answer she expected, but far from one she liked. "Tsk… they're such a meddler."
Inyssa shrugged. "I mean, yes, that's sort of their charm, don't you think? You'd never have met Rory and Kilika if not for Simone's constant insistence."
"I…" Pyxis' eyes went to her two friends, and she sighed. "I guess you're right. But I never asked you to come see me off or whatever. I'm not your friend, Inyssa."
Beside her, Kilika rolled her eyes. "You keep telling yourself that."
"What was that?" Pyxis glared at her.
"Come on, Pyx. She has dinner with us and Simone every other Sunday, I think we can all call each other friends by now," said Rory. "Despite your differences."
"T-that's…"
Inyssa cut them off. "It's fine. These things take time… trust me, I'd know." She gave the two other girls a pat on the shoulder, smiling. "By the way, you look fetching, chickadee. That hat suits you better than it ever suited me, for sure."
Giddy, Kilika raised her hands to her head and adjusted the white wool hat atop her head, proudly showing the pink Pokeball symbol woven into it. Inyssa laughed under her breath, but the sound came out as something more. Seeing that was like a splash of cold water on her face, like sunlight falling on her body as she took an afternoon nap.
She'd been unsure about the gesture at first, and had regretted ever mentioning to Kilika that she had the hat, because the girl wouldn't stop insisting that she gave it to her, now that Inyssa wasn't wearing it anymore. Retrieving it had been easy enough, considering she'd left a mark on it back in Snowpoint and could teleport it with a snap of the fingers, but actually giving it away…
But whatever doubts she'd had were gone. Filled with bad memories as it was for her, for Kilika it was just a nice accessory gifted to her by a friend. And it really did fit her so wonderfully.
"Simone said they loved it too!" Kilika exclaimed. "Maybe they wanted you to come see it too before we leave for our journey."
"You really look as cute as a button. Though I'm sure Simone only asked me because I love so close by," said Inyssa. "I figured I might as well, since I also wanted to come say hi to Lucas."
Doing good on her promise, she went straight for Lucas and caught him in a tight hug, practically lifting him off the ground, although not literally because she wasn't yet strong enough to do such a thing.
"Ghah! I caught the nerd I was looking for!" she exclaimed, a big smile on her face. "Now not even your boyfriend can save you!"
Lucas let out a short-breathed laugh and returned the hug as best he could. "You know I could shake you off with little trouble, right?"
"But you won't, because you're a big softie and a nerd."
"I'm very happy to see you too, Niss," he said. "You sure seem lively."
It was clear as day, and Lucas couldn't have been happier to see the change in his friend. Inyssa looked… more substantial, in every way. She was still pale, but not deathly so, and half a year of good eating had gotten rid of that emaciated look she'd always worn. Her cheeks were fuller and her complexion peachier, brighter. Not to mention the change in attitude.
From what he'd learned from Barry a while ago, this cheeriness wasn't wholly uncharacteristic of Inyssa, but before it usually reared up only during non-threatening yet high-stake situations like Gym matches. As it turned out, those states of crazed passion for battle were actually undiagnosed manic episodes caused by a spike in dopamine and adrenaline, which left her exhausted and irritable once they were over. Now under more effective treatment, her moods were a lot more stable.
Though from what he'd heard, she still got a bit too heated up during Pokemon battles, but he figured that was just Inyssa's character. It would probably never change.
"That's treatment for you," said Inyssa as he put him down. "It's a pain in the ass to keep up, but I guess it's worth it."
"I'm very glad…"
Their little reunion was unfortunately interrupted by two pairs of curious eyes. Kilika was the first to ask. "You're friends with the professor, Niss?"
"Er, interim professor," Lucas hurried to say. "But yes, we've… known each other since Inyssa first started her journey."
Inyssa placed one arm around Lucas, hugging him close, and let out a dreamy sigh. "Man, that takes me back."
Another scoff left Pyxis' mouth. "Why are you reminiscing? It only happened a year ago. And don't go acting all protective with us; I'm older than you, dipshit."
Inyssa let go of Lucas, and folded her arms, raising an eyebrow. "Oh hey, speaking of a year ago," she said. "Remember that battle in the middle of Jubilife? That's the first time we ran into each other, yeah?"
Immediately, what little color was in Pyxis' face turned into a pale shade of pink as realization dawned on her. That was right. Only a year before she and Orion had fought not only Inyssa, but the very same Lucas that had just given Pyxis her starter.
"Oh, yeah… that was you with the Budew, wasn't it?" reminisced Lucas. "I'd completely forgotten about that."
"Yep. That was Bret," said Inyssa. "Yet another one of your Pokemon that are now mine, Pyxis."
"Don't say it like that and jinx it," the girl muttered under her breath. "And… sorry for that. I was a dumbass back then."
She tried to hide it with a nonchalant shrug, but it was a gesture like that of a proud Glameow. It didn't hide well that she really cared. Lucas laughed it off awkwardly.
"Now who's reminiscing?" Inyssa teased. "You're not alone though, I was insufferable back then too. I think only Lucas had a good head on his shoulders since the start."
"Oh, I wouldn't say that…"
"Remember how we ran through the whole city chasing those two?" she asked him, raising an eyebrow. "And you kept staring at my legs?"
Lucas flinched, eyes shooting wide with embarrassment. "I was not! That's just something you tricked me into saying!"
A hand to her mouth, Inyssa laughed teasingly and added. "I don't mind, really. It's flattering. I always found you pretty cute too; remember our kiss in Canalave? If you weren't taken, Barry and I would've snatched you up in a heartbeat."
"H-hey! Don't say things like that!" Lucas protested. "I know you're not serious, you just like teasing me."
"A little bit of column A, a little bit of column B," she admitted.
In front of them, Pyxis rolled her eyes as obviously as she could, then looked down at the non-existent watch around her wrist condescendingly, wanting to make her point clear. Kilika, however, beat her to the punch.
"Oh my goddddd you two can kiss later!" she yelled, slamming her fists on the armrests of her chair. "We wanna see our Pokemon!"
The two turned toward her and laughed nervously, a hint of red in their faces.
"Right, sorry," said Inyssa. "Your starters are a surprise, right? Except for you, chickadee?"
"Nope, I don't know either!" Kilika said cheerily. "Simone knows, but I don't."
"Then what are you waiting for? This is a once in a lifetime opportunity!" said Inyssa, a glint of excitement behind her eyes. "Let them out already!"
"Yeah!"
With the three girls cheering in unison –one of them much more monotone and sarcastically than the others– they raised their Pokeballs and pressed the button at the same time. Inyssa, Lucas and Pyxis closed their eyes for a moment, experienced as they were. The other two didn't know they were supposed to, and were blinded by the triple explosion of light that filled the room.
Luckily, they blinked away the blurriness just in time for the light to dissipate, and for their partners' form to take shape. Kilika gasped like she'd punctured a lung. Rory let out a little 'Oh!' and Pyxis stayed completely silent, frozen by shock.
A sleeping, cross-legged Abra floated in front of Kilika. A sturdy-looking Machop punched his open palm and smiled up at Rory. And in front of Pyxis stood a small carapaced creature, bright red and with a stylish mustache atop her nose. A Kricketot.
Pyxis' voice came out as a whisper. "…You gotta be kidding me."
A second later, Inyssa keeled over and broke into a fit of laughter.