Thursday, June 8th, 1978, 2315

Dani and I both froze for the briefest of seconds before turning away abruptly. The normal tension present between the two of us immediately crept back in, much to my dismay. Fucking Ellie.

I reassured myself that there were plenty of bodies of water throughout Kanto. If the only time we could talk like this was in the water, I decided that we would stay at every hot spring possible. And even some that were well out of our way. And lakes. Rivers, too.

"Can we talk more about this later?" I asked stiffly as I braced myself for the storm of extroversion heading our way.

She smiled shyly my way as she wiped tears off her face. "I'd like that. Also, you don't need to worry. I'll keep your secret. I had no idea you were so emotional when I first met you. Guess the Seiichi aren't all stone-cold warriors after all. It's comforting that one of Fuchsia's unofficial royalty is human like the rest of us; you've made that abundantly clear."

I stiffened at the jab, even knowing she hadn't seriously meant it. It felt far too reminiscent of something Sula might say to give me a difficult time, and my face hardened involuntarily in response.

Dani must have picked up on the subtle shift in my demeanor. "I don't actually mean it, Mare. Even after everything you've shared about your family, I still have difficulty believing they truly think poorly of you. I'll be more careful with my words from now on."

I gave a curt nod and forced myself to relax, taking a deep breath before letting it out slowly.

Dani directed her gaze knowingly towards where we could hear Ellie splashing her way towards us. She leaned in closer and whispered, "Before she gets here, I just wanted to say thanks for listening. I haven't really talked about my dad much, and I'd prefer it if you kept it private. I know Ellie's nice and all, but I just don't think she would get it for some reason. Honestly, it's kind of nice to have a secret between just the two of us."

I knew what she meant. Ellie was incredibly empathic and compassionate, but besides her parent's divorce, it sounded like her life had been relatively free of any significant loss.

I nodded gravely. "Thanks for trusting me enough to tell me. This might be the first secret I've ever been told," I admitted with an embarrassed shrug. "It feels nice."

"Yeah, it does," she replied, slipping back under the water.

We sat silently for the last remaining seconds, enjoying the fleeting moment of companionship. There was no need to say more. And more importantly, my painstakingly earned one-on-one time was over.

"Arceus, this water is so flipping hot," complained Ellie as she finally made it to us. "I feel like I'm literally going to burn my toes off. This is, like, too much!"

In sharp juxtaposition to Dani's no-nonsense black sports bra and compression shorts, Ellie wore a bright green two-piece swimsuit with little white polka-dots. I found myself impressed with the changes in her physique.

It' wasn't like Ellie had been overweight when I met her by any means. But the difference was apparent, nonetheless. Walking all day, paired with limited nutrition, had rapidly melted any excess baby fat. It was like any softness she had started with was now gone. Her abdominal muscles were clearly visible, and her high cheekbones stood out prominently in the lighting, giving her face a hollow look. If she wasn't part of an assignment, or if I wasn't head over heels for Dani, I probably would have been tongue tied around her, too. But as it was, she felt like a younger sibling of some kind.

I waved in greeting. Dani gave a slight nod to Ellie as she settled in front of us with an expectant expression. I could tell Ellie was highly curious about what we had been discussing without her. Too bad for her, my lips were sealed. I felt strangely giddy, having recently acquired my first secret, and wasn't about to mess it up.

"Hah, it definitely is. We've been here awhile, and I can feel myself getting dehydrated by the second. Doesn't it feel good, though? You and Anabelle fell more times than I could count," Dani said with a chuckle. "You should probably get her a bath, or people will mistake her for a Kangaskhan."

"Very funny." Ellie stuck out her tongue. "But you're not wrong. It's not like I'm clumsy, either! That stupid muddy trail was more slickery than it had any right to be. I don't even get how you and Mare didn't fall the entire time," she ranted while picking at her usually shiny auburn hair.

It was crusted with mud and completely ruined the image she was going for with the cute swimsuit.

She continued, "The only time he even came close to falling was when you suggested visiting his house to see his mom's Arcanine. Suspicious, no?"

"Are you going to wash out your hair?" I asked to deflect the discussion. I had conveniently forgotten about that tiny incident and had no interest in reopening that line of conversation. "It's kind of disgusting."

It worked, and I breathed a sigh of relief as her easily distractible personality took over.

Elie winced. "I know I should, but I'm not sure I can bring myself to dunk my head under the water. Unlike you, I have light and fair skin, and it would probably turn me permanently red. Not a good look, you see. Pale skin is considered the height of beauty in Johto, and I wouldn't want to ruin my good looks."

I knew what she meant. I was also hesitant to even let the water touch my face. I could submerge my head for a few seconds, but not nearly long enough to wash my hair thoroughly. Not that I needed to, really. The storm had soaked us so utterly that there wasn't much point in me subjecting myself to needless torture by hair washing.

"Did you bring River? Or Larvitar? They could probably channel some cooler water for you," Dani suggested. "It would be good practice for them, too."

"Oh! That's a great idea! I saw the others tucked together into a cuddle puddle near the center of the garden. It was super cute, so I let them be. Even the bugs joined in! Geralt looks all dour and grumpy with his long horsey-horse face most of the time, but he looked like a doting grandparent when I passed them."

Ellie paused, thinking for a moment. "Why weren't they with you? It seems like your pokemon would probably enjoy hot springs as much as humans do?"

"W-well," Dani floundered. "That was because…"

"Just kidding! I already know why you guys wanted alone time. Mare is, like, the least subtle boy I've ever met, Ellie said, chuckling with a knowing smile. "Besides, I knew you were pissed at me when you left, and I wanted to give you some space."

"Yeah," Dani trailed off. She looked uncertain and uncomfortable. "I'm sorry for getting upset at you. It's not like you did anything wrong. Forgive me?"

Ellie sloshed forward, getting right up in Dani's face. "On one condition."

"Okay. What's the condition?" Dani asked skeptically.

I continued my silent observation. I was highly curious about what Ellie's condition could be. I didn't feel like it was my place to step in and work it out, so I decided to just quietly enjoy the show.

"The condition," Ellie continued theatrically, "is that we play a game of truth or dare!"

"You gotta be fucking kidding me," groaned Dani.

"And I'm sorry too," Ellie added. "I don't even know what I did wrong, but I'm sorry anyway."

"Is it that bad? I've never heard of truth or dare before," I interjected after noticing Dani awkwardly looking away at Ellie's apology.

Ellie gasped, and even Dani hit me with a look of outright pity.

I couldn't help but feel defensive at the onslaught. "Don't look at me like that. It's an honest question! It sounds like a game of some kind, and I didn't ever really have time for games! You two are so dramatic about the smallest things."

The two glanced at each other, and I could tell there was some subconscious communication between them that I wasn't privy to.

"I humbly accept your condition. Let's show Mare the joys of truth or dare," said Dani with an undeniably mischievous tone.

"Yes indeed. This is going to be so much fun! Who wants to go first?" Ellie's eyes were lit up, and her usual air of unquenchable excitement was back in full force.

I held up my hand. "Wait. You need to tell me the rules before deciding who goes first. For all I know, going first is a poor tactical decision and sets you up to lose the game."

For the first time that night, Dani giggled. Not just a light chuckle, but actual giggling.

"Mare, you dummy! There are no winners or losers in truth or dare. It's just a fun game to get to know each other better. I used to play it with my friends back at Fuchsia Middle School. We grew out of it in the last few years, but playing as a twelve-year-old was a lot of fun."

"Me too!" chimed in Ellie. "Back in Goldenrod, we always had sleepovers, and our favorite game was truth or dare. Sometimes, we just watched scary movies and ate junk food, but we, like, loved to come up with ridiculous dares to see who would do them. My parents were super lenient about things because neither of them wanted to be the bad guy, so I got some solid experience. I'm pretty good, if I do say so myself."

The Johtan native had a smug grin on her face. I could tell she was proud of her skills at the game, which fired up my competitive spirit. No way was I going to lose to Ellie at something.

This was a world that I had no frame of reference for. It was nice to see Dani and Ellie connecting, but at the same time, it made me even more aware of how different my life had been compared to others my age. I was determined to make the most of it while I had the chance.

"I'll go first. How do we start?" I asked. In the water, I moved my limbs around, making sure I was prepared for any challenges that might come up.

A flip? Done. Do a lot of pushups? Easy. I was confident I could accomplish anything they threw at me. I was a Seiichi born and bred and had trained since I was small.

"Okay," Ellie said. "Truth or dare?"

My brow scrunched up in confusion. "Wait, wait. That's it? Do I get to pick? That seems way too easy."

Next to me, Dani laughed outright, only stopping when it had gone on for an awkwardly long time. Ellie and I looked at each other in growing amusement. Dani was usually quite stoic, so this was a pleasant surprise. I could tell she felt much better than when I first spotted her in the garden.

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Uncannily better, now that I thought about it. It wasn't usual for people to suddenly undergo such a significant shift. I'd heard Dani laugh more in the last five minutes than the last week.

"Sorry," she wiped her eyes. "I just forget how stupid Mare is about certain things. The disparity is unreal. The name of the game is literally truth or dare. How can you mess that up?"

I bristled, not appreciating the unwarranted criticism. "Moving on. Just keep explaining the game. I choose dare. I'm confident in my abilities."

Ellie raised her eyebrows. "Confident, are we? Mind if I take the first dare, Dani?"

"Sure thing," Dani replied, grinning. "I'm excited to see what you come up with."

Ellie turned to me, her face serious. "Mare. I dare you to kiss Dani."

I physically recoiled, feeling like I had just been slapped in the face. What kind of dare was that? There was no way that was an acceptable dare. I looked to Dani for support and was shocked to see she was looking away. Her face was a dark red. Is she mad? Does she really not want to kiss me that much?!

"Traitor," Dani whispered, still not looking at me.

"Can I swap back to truth?" I asked hopefully.

"I fucking knew it," crowed Ellie. "I had to bring you down from your high horse. You lose, you know. If you aren't able to complete the dare."

"It's not just me, though," I complained. "Your dare is unfair; I can hardly force Dani into something she doesn't want."

"You don't have to kiss her on the lips, you dummy," laughed Ellie. "Just give her a little peck on the cheek or something. You gotta look for loopholes, Mare. I gave you an easy one."

Dani breathed a sigh of relief at Ellie's admission, and her color gradually returned to normal. "Just get it over with, Mare. Ellie definitely doesn't fuck around."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "You looked really upset a moment ago."

Ellie giggled. "Yeah, Dani. You were reaalllll red there for a second."

Dani bristled, glaring at Ellie. "Shut up! It's hot in here; Mare and I have been in here for way longer than you have."

"Oh, I know," winked Ellie. "Should I leave to give you some space?"

"Nope," I chimed in. "This is fine. I can do this." I slowly approached Dani, trying not to panic when she averted her gaze.

"Here," she pointed at her cheek.

I took a deep breath. "Fine." Leaning forward, I gave her a chaste peck on the cheek. And just like that, it was over. Nothing crazy happened. I leaned back, sighing in relief in unison with Dani.

"Hmm... that was less climactic than I hoped," Ellie said with a frown. "After Dani's initial reaction, I thought I was sure to see some steam coming out of her ears." She turned my way. "Okay, Mare. You've survived your first round unscathed. Hurrah."

"Thanks," I said drily, creating some space from Dani. My face still felt hot and my heartbeat was erratic. I hope she couldn't hear my heart, I thought. That would be so embarrassing.

"Anyway," said Ellie, turning to Dani. "It's your turn now. Truth or dare?"

Dani blinked, surprised at being the sudden focus. "Oh, okay. Yeah, go ahead. I choose dare."

Ellie looked at me with bright eyes. "You pick it this time, Mare!"

"Uhh," I hesitated, frantically trying to devise a decent dare. My hormones firmly directed me one way, but I knew better than to fall into that trap after my recent close call. "I dare you to do fifty pushups."

Across from me, Ellie facepalmed. "No. Unacceptable. I know it's your turn, but I need to stop you before you get the wrong idea about this game. It is not a physical training game, and I won't stand for it to be bastardized so. Dares are things like making out with your hand, or burp the alphabet, or sucking your big toe. Think outside the box."

Dani waited nervously, giving me a chance to pick something different.

Finally, after a few seconds of careful consideration, I selected what I thought was a reasonable dare. "I dare you to go grab Larvitar and bring him over here to channel a globe of ice-cold water over your head."

Ellie clapped in affirmation. "Yes! That's still pretty lame, but it's a big improvement over fifty pushups. I don't even think Dani can do fifty pushups, anyway."

"I can do fifty pushups," grumbled Dani in protest as she swam off to complete her task.

While she was gone, Ellie completely shifted gears, turning to me gravely and sidling closer. "Did you figure out why Dani was so upset with me? You don't have to tell me all the reasons, but please let me know if it was something I did so I can avoid it in the future."

Although I had become more used to Ellie's rapid changes in mood starting on day one, this was the most volatile yet.

"I think it's okay. It wasn't really about you so much. She asked me not to say anything, though, so that's all I can offer," I professed, hoping she would be content with the response.

Ellie breathed out a loud sigh of relief. "Good. I was worried I said something that offended her, and I've been perseverating on it. It took all I had not to run out here right away to talk to her about it. It's not that easy to give people space," she admitted. "I just want to talk and talk and talk and make the conflict go away right then and there, even though I know that's not how it works in the real world."

She shook her hair and stared up at the stars. "It's so funny how things can change within a group. I feel completely fine when it's all three of us, but when it's just her and I, there's this weird sense of distance. I really want to be friends with her, but it seems like she isn't as interested."

I patted Ellie consolingly on the shoulder. I knew exactly what she meant. It made me feel better to hear that I wasn't the only one struggling to get closer to Dani. Maybe she was just resistant to opening up?

"It'll just take some time. We're pretty lucky that we got along right away. Not all groups work well together. There's always going to be small hiccups along the way. Honestly, I lowkey hated you on day one until I realized you were hopelessly kind."

Ellie gave a pained half-smile back. "Of course, you would say something logical like that." She patted me on the shoulder. "Thanks, Mare. I'm sure it'll work out in the end. If Dani stays with us, we'll have the better part of the next year to work on it. I think I just really want a friend here in Kanto. Don't get me wrong, you're great and all, but it's not the same as having a close girl-friend who you can talk to about silly boy stuff and complain about your nails and how cute your hair looks that day. It's been a long time since I've had that, and I feel lonelier now that it's within reach yet still seems so far away."

I went out on a limb, going for a laugh. "You do have nice nails, though. And any boy you choose would be lucky to have you. Sorry, I'm not a girl."

She smiled again, but genuinely this time. "My nails are, like, so nice," she joked, holding a slender hand in display. I say joked, because her nails were horrid from her repeated attempts to catch herself before she fell while we slogged through the mud. There were multiple hangnails, and it even looked like her index fingernail was peeling off slightly.

"Before Dani returns, can I ask you a direct question unrelated to the game?" I asked.

I had a theory about the discrepancy between Dani and Ellie's response to the presence that they encountered after ignoring Ona's one rule.

She shrugged noncommittally. "Sure. The game was just some good fun to break up the tension from earlier. We don't actually have to play truth or dare. You can ask me anything."

"Have you ever seen someone die?"

Ellie scoffed. "No, of course not! Why? Have you?"

I smiled bitterly. "You can use your next question to ask that if you want."

"No fair," Ellie sighed, but I could tell she didn't mean it. She leaned closer and whispered, "Also, nice work, getting closer to Dani. I'm behind this ship all the way."

"Shut up," I hissed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Mare," Ellie sighed. "You're a fucking idiot; it's apparent to anyone with eyes you're into the girl, and I can hardly blame you. Did you confess?"

Before I could respond, Dani's voice rang out from somewhere int he mist, "What's no fair?"

"It's not fair that Mare gets to hang out in the hot springs with two cute girls! Where are the cute Kanto boys at," teased Ellie, rolling her eyes at me as she mouthed, "pussy."

My face got hot at her comment. Am I being a wuss? Is it better to just tell her I like her?

"No kidding! If you recall, I had a whole gaggle of awkward Kanto boys before I ran into you two. I'm not sure if I would call any of them cute. Avery, maybe. But his accent ruined it for me. I suppose I should be thanking you," rejoined Dani as she treaded towards us.

As she came into view, it became clear that she relied on Larvitar to tow her. Although small, his ability to channel water type-energy meant that he could generate decent propulsive force and was much faster than he looked.

"Tarr!" he cooed joyfully as he saw me.

I waved back at him, happy to see the strides he had made with water manipulation. It was challenging for a dense rock-ground type, and towing a decent-sized woman was a vast upgrade from barely blowing bubbles a week ago.

They had made it over to our little circle near the shrine in seconds. Dani returned to her position, holding the stone edge with one hand while her feet dangled below her.

"Alright, missy! You're up. Let's see this thing," Ellie said bossily with a sadistic smile that was immediately contagious. I was beginning to see the appeal of the game if I was being honest.

"Larvitar, I need you to create a large sphere of water, decrease the temperature as much as you can without freezing it, and then drop it all over Dani," I explained.

Dani scowled but otherwise looked like she was prepared for the cold.

Larvitar nodded, bringing his two hands together in concentration.

As if molded by invisible limbs, a blob of steaming water rose out of the springs, coalescing in position above Dani. Larvitar grunted with effort, and we watched as the steam billowed out rapidly, indicating a sharp drop in temperature.

In just a few seconds, we were left with a perfectly spherical orb of water that I could only assume was quite cold. I had no interest in testing it myself.

"Tar," he inquired, flicking his eyes at Dani as if asking for permission.

"Go ahead," I assented.

The orb lazily hit Dani with a loud splat, and the trainer hissed at the sudden shift in temperature but didn't otherwise indicate it affected her besides a slight stiffening.

Ellie clapped appreciatively. "Nicely done. No hesitation, either; unlike Mare. Although I was hoping he might settle on something more... exciting."

"T-thanks, I've decided I need to step up my toughness anyway, so this is a good start," chattered Dani before dunking her head completely underwater to wash away any remnants of the cool water.

I glared at Ellie but couldn't really argue with her analysis; I could tell she was hoping I used my dare to get closer to Dani. "Thanks, Larvitar; you can relax and enjoy the water now if you want."

"Tar," he confirmed and slid into the warm water, floating languidly around the three of us in wide circles. The saurian had adjusted naturally to the water and even begun to display significant physiological differences.

After eating the expensive resource the first day, he had grown gills and slightly changed colors.

Now? He had developed webbing along the edges of his paddle-like arms and a thick ridge along his back, starting with his prominent crest. The adaptations left him moving more smoothly in the water than he did on land.

We had been surprised to discover he could even outperform River by a significant margin, displaying greater control over water and reaching higher speeds while moving in it. If he was losing to a rock-ground pokemon, River had a lot of ground to cover.

"That settles it, Mare. He's a fish. A rockfish," Dani supplied. "There's no way a rock-ground type could channel that much water. And he definitely shouldn't be able to affect its temperature like that. I'm curious to see what they say when we finally get to the lab. If he doesn't swim away before then, that is."

"Such a comedian. I'm dying of laughter," I deadpanned. "Jokes on you; Larvitar is working himself raw to improve. I have more trouble stopping him from training than anything else. He would only swim off if I told him he needed to improve his cardio. But he'd be back for more the next day, if not the next moment."

Ellie clapped, drawing our attention away from my confusing pokemon. "Okay, it's my turn now! Who is going to ask me?"

"I'll do it," I volunteered, all too happy to get this over with. Although it was fun watching Dani deal with the water, I could feel the strains of the long day settling in. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare!" shouted Ellie without a shadow of doubt.

"I dare you to go touch the shrine over there," I said, gesturing towards the ominous monument behind us.

Dani looked at me with open curiosity. Since she had been crying at the time, she hadn't seen what I had seen from the shrine. "Trust me," I assured her.

Ellie looked confused. "Is there something I'm missing here? That's a pretty innocent dare. You're supposed to dare me to take off my top, or something like that."

I ignored her ridiculous comment. I hoped my face was already red enough from the water that she couldn't see my blush. "Then you should have no problem completing it. I'm testing something. Humor me."

"Okay, whatever then." Ellie crawled over the edge, marching up the shrine without hesitation. It looked even more massive when she was paired beside it, over double her height. She placed one hand upon it, even going so far as to stick her other hand entirely through one of the gaps in the material.

I watched closely, looking for any sign of the dark and twisting substance I had seen leaving Dani.

I saw none.

"Second part of the dare," I called out. "I want you to think of your worst memory. The saddest or scariest thing you can remember. Really try to feel something. Maybe think of your worst fears or insecurities."

"Mare, this is getting weird. What are you doing?" hissed Dani under her breath with an uncertain look in her eyes.

"Just watch; I'm looking for something. I'll tell you once we get out of here. Do you see anything?"

"Uhh, odd dare, Mare. I'm thinking of my parents' worst fight. Is something supposed to happen?" questioned Ellie nervously.

Nothing happened, which was both helpful and not.

"You can stop now. Thanks for rolling with it. Do you feel anything weird?"

"Nope!" Ellie beamed. "Feel right as rain. It's weird, though. It's pretty warm out, but that stone is ice fucking cold. Felt kinda nice. I'll have to keep it in mind if I overheat tomorrow."

"Thanks, Ellie. I found out all I needed to know. Are you guys ready to head to bed? I'm beat," I suggested, wanting time to process the new information.

Ellie plopped back into the water next to us with a yawn. "Yeah, I bet you are! I didn't get to see it, but the first thing I heard when I got to the pool was that you were apparently crying. Again. One more round through, or the next time I see your family, I tell them all about it."

I sighed. It was going to be a long night.