Nate walked through the empty movie lot, laying in eerie silence. The only noise breaking through it was Beartic's leading footsteps. He imagined Pokéstar Studio crew members moving from place to place to produce their assigned films. He saw them scurrying around like durants, moving lights, cameras, and large props. The hustle and bustle that would usually occupy the area was gone.

~The studio really has fallen into hard times... ~

"Bear, Beartic."

The freezing pokémon halted at an abandoned movie set. The place looked like a street from Castelia City. The towering props were painted to look like skyscrapers and makeshift lamp posts lined up on the sidewalk. Fake cars were parked on the road, some of them were rusted at the edges. Abandonment left the movie set in disarray. Nate spotted a pile of broken wooden planks on the floor. It looked out of place compared to the urban environment the trio was standing in.

Beartic grabbed Riolu from his shoulder and placed him on the floor. After the two pokémon talked for a bit, Beartic faced Nate and made a gesture in the shape of a sphere, pointed at Riolu, and left.

"Is he getting your pokéball?"

Riolu was looking at Beartic walk away in the distance. After hearing Nate's question he turned around and nodded.

"I see, well I guess we should get started then," Nate sat down on the pavement, crossing his legs. "You never answered my question earlier, you know icebreakers?"

Riolu shook his head.

"Well, icebreakers are basically something people do to get to know each other better, like playing short games. You want to try it?"

Riolu gave a hesitant nod.

"Ri, riolu, ri," Riolu barked, pointing at his mouth.

"Right, I can't understand you. How about you charade it for me? Just act out the words you want to say and I'll try guessing. That can be our game."

Riolu nodded and began charading. He tapped the side of his head, later making an "x" shape with his arms.

"You don't know?" Nate was confused, this was a strange way to start charades. "Don't know what?"

Riolu spread his arms wide open.

"Everything? What do you mean, everything?"

Riolu slumped his shoulders, breathing out a sigh. He pointed at Nate and pretended to scribble on his paw. Nate realized that Riolu was asking for something to draw on.

"You need something to draw?" Nate zipped open his sling backpack and took out his notepad and pen. "I guess it'll help with charades."

Nate looked at his notepad, the first couple of pages had notes that he had written during his journey.

* Snivy - Makeshift Leaf Tornado with Magical Leaf successful,

* Will help him transition to the real thing.

* When evolved, Servines gain better control of their vines

* Train wrap to be stronger.

* Mareep - Continue to use Cotton Spore on enemy weak spots (i.e limbs, eyes)

* At least until she evolves into Ampharos.

* Figure out movement-limiting moves to replace Cotton Spore till then.

He flipped his notepad to a blank page and handed it over to Riolu. When Riolu grabbed it, he flipped to the first page, curious as to why he didn't give the first page.

"Those are my notes on my other pokémon," Nate explained. "It helps to write about improving their moves and stuff." Riolu gave a look of understanding and flipped back to the blank page, turning around and scratching something down.

"What are you drawing?"

Riolu didn't respond, still busy with whatever he was scribbling. He irritatedly muttered at his paws as he drew. After some time, he shoved the notepad in front of Nate's face.

Riolu didn't draw. Two words were ineptly written on the page.

*No charades.*

Nate stared at the notepad, then at Riolu, then back at the notepad again. The two words were completely understandable, but those words coming from a pokémon were nothing short of incredible. Few pokémon like some psychic types were truly literate. Alakazam was the most well-known example, but that was only because it had an average IQ of five thousand. A young pokémon like riolu, who wasn't even a Psychic-type, knowing how to write? Nate was at a loss for words.

*Are you ok?*

Nate woke up from his trance, still shocked by Riolu's literacy. "Y-Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just shocked that you can write Unovan, I thought you were going to draw something. How did you learn to write?"

Riolu shrugged.

"You don't remember? What do you mean?"

*Amnesia.*

Nate realized what Riolu was trying to charade a couple minutes ago. Crossing his arms after pointing at his head was clear now, Nate should've realized sooner.

"Amnesia? But you remember how to write," Nate held up a hand. "Wait, I think I know what that's called. It started with an R. R... re... re-something... retrograde! You have retrograde amnesia?"

Riolu tilted his head, unsure of what the term meant.

"I remember watching a documentary on pokémon moves as a kid and one episode was about Amnesia," Nate explained. "People who get hit with Amnesia forget personal information but remember skills even though they don't know why. I wonder who taught you to write?"

Riolu shrugged again.

"Sorry, I was just talking to myself at the end. Of course, you wouldn't know."

After an awkward silence, Nate picked up the conversation again.

"How about this?" Nate proposed. "Since you can write, we can just ask each other questions about who we are? I ask first and then you ask, we'll go back and forth. You want to try it?"

*Yes*

"I'll start off by introducing myself since I never got to do so properly. My name's Nate and I'm a Pokémon Trainer from Aspertia City. I'm on a journey to be Unova's champion and be the best trainer ever!"

Nate heard a stifled giggle from Riolu. He realized that he stood up, posing with his thumb pointing at his chest after finishing his introduction. Nate had a habit of being over-excited when talking about his dream. Blushing from embarrassment, he sat back down.

"A-anyways," Nate coughed. "I'll ask the first question, it's been on my mind since I first saw you up close," Nate pointed at Riolu's chest. "Why is your chest a little brighter than the rest of your fur?"

*Burn injury. Fur dye fading out.* Riolu pointed at his chest and then at his head.

"Did the injury cause your amnesia?"

Riolu flipped back a couple pages and underlined the word *Yes*.

*Why did you come here? To Pokéstar Studios?*

"It was actually because of Mr. O'Connor." Nate noticed Riolu's confused expression, and he continued explaining. "Mr. O'Connor is actually Roxie's father, the gym leader of Virbank. I challenged Roxie and won but there was no way for me to go to Castelia City, where the next badge is. Roxie asked me to get her father to get back to work since the ports were in danger of a lack of leadership. Mr. O'Connor ran away from his duties as a sea captain and left the Virbank Ports in disarray to be a 'Pokéstar,'" Nate air quoted the last word. "I found Mr. O'Connor and he invited me to see the test screening. After seeing everyone's reaction though, he decided to go back to Virbank. Mr. Stu Deeoh acknowledged his decision and wanted me to act in his place. After that, you showed up and now we're here."

"Sorry for that long answer but I think that's everything. How about you though? How did you come to Pokéstar Studios?"

The scratching sounds of Riolu's penmanship filled the silence of the abandoned movie set. A few minutes passed by as Riolu flipped the notepad, the size of the notepad restricted long answers on a single page. When he finished the last word, he flipped back to the beginning of his answer and showed Nate.

*I woke up a couple of days ago injured. Two herdiers found me and took me to a ranch.*

A ranch? The closest ranch that Nate went to was Floccesy Ranch. The couple there couldn't find one of their herdiers so he and his friend slash rival Hugh looked around the ranch. It turned out that someone who called themselves a member of Team Plasma stole one of the herdiers and dragged them back into the woods but got lost. Battling him was easy, the grunt's only pokémon was a patrat that wasn't in prime condition. He ran away before the couple called the cops but at least the herdiers were back together. Was Riolu a victim of the Team Plasma member as he ran away?

"Riolu, wait," Nate interrupted, Riolu was halfway through flipping to the next page. "Did you see someone around you when you woke up?"

Riolu shook his head.

"Were there any signs of someone near you? Any markings like footprints?"

He shook his head again.

"That's interesting, it's just that you showed up near Floccesy Ranch after I dealt with a thief there and I thought he did something to you while he ran away into the woods."

Riolu flipped to a new page and wrote a quick sentence.

*Reed and Meadow think it was a Fire-type.*

"That could be correct, the Team Plasma grunt didn't have a Fire-type or anything that could make fire... Sorry for the sidetrack, go on."

*The couple treated my injuries after I passed out from the pain. Mr. Stu Deeoh showed up soon after and saw me.*

*He asked if I wanted to act and I said yes. Beartic taught me a few moves and we recorded the movie soon after.*

"And then we watched the test screening and now we're here," Nate finished Riolu's story, the jackal pokémon giving a nod. "You're one strange Riolu. I've learned that Riolus and Lucarios are hyper-focused in combat and martial arts but you want to work in moviemaking. This is the first time I've ever heard of a riolu actor."

When Riolu flipped the notepad, ready to write a response, the both of them heard footsteps from the distance. Nate turned around to the source of the sound, already aware of who it was. Beartic arrived at the scene and conversed with Riolu.

The two pokémon talked together, leaving Nate in the dust, unable to understand them. Beartic pointed at Riolu's paw, Nate's notepad and pen in his clutch. He could imagine Beartic asking why he had them. Riolu broke a sweat, speaking as if he was unsure himself. Beartic raised an eye but dismissed Riolu's answer. He walked up to Nate and handed over a pokéball.

Nate stood up and faced the Beatic. The pokémon towering over him was just as high as he was when Nate was sitting down.

"This is Riolu's?"

Beartic gave a grunt. He looked back at Riolu and spoke a few more words before walking away, leaving the two alone again.

"So..." Nate dragged the "o" sound. "What were you two talking about?"

*Asked if I was alright. Person with script arriving soon*

~But the conversation was much longer than that,~ Nate pondered. ~Why did Beartic look skeptical for a moment?~

He wanted to ask Riolu some more questions but it was going to have to wait. Nate saw a man jogging towards them at a hectic pace.

"Phew," The man let out a short breath. "Never thought filmmaking would give me this much of a workout when I joined." He took out some papers from his binder and handed them to Nate.

"My name's Vincent, I'm the script supervisor here. I heard from Mr. Stu Deeoh that I needed to look for a boy named Nate with Riolu. If you have any questions regarding your part, I'm the man you look for."

Nate thanked Vincent. He took his and Riolu's scripts from the supervisor.

"Wait," Vincent uttered. "Why did you take Riolu's script? You already know?"

"Know what?" Nate questioned. "That he's literate? We've been talking together, or I should say he's been writing and I was doing the talking."

"You can write too?!" Vincent exclaimed, ruffling the top of Riolu's head. "You're surprising me every time I see you."

Riolu waved Vincent's hands away and fixed his fur back in place, his facial expression giving a slight pout.

"Riolu shocked me and the lead of makeup a while ago when he demanded that he read the script himself." He pointed at Riolu. "I've already said this before but this little guy makes my job easier."

"How so?" Nate asked.

"Since pokémon actors can't read, people like me usually have to read it to them and act out when they use their moves. That's why I was confused when you took Riolu's script, actors usually don't take their partner pokémon's script," Vincent looked at his watch. "Crap, I gotta go now. Brycen's acting team needs the script to be read yet again," He turned the pages of his binder. "They have a pretty bad memory when it comes to acting that doesn't involve moves. Do you have any questions before I leave?"

"I kinda do," Nate replied. "It's not really a question but more of a request. Do you have any extra pieces of paper?"

"I sure do," He unclipped his binder and took out the last few pages, handing them to Nate.

"Thank you, Vincent," Nate handed over the pieces of paper to Riolu, the pokémon handed the notepad in return. "Riolu's been using my notepad to talk and I don't want him to take up all the space."

"No worries, Nate. Now if you don't mind, I've got some scripts to read."

Nate and Riolu waved goodbye as the Script Supervisor left. The both of them soon looked at the front of the script.

"Riolu-Kid?"

*Better than Riolu-Man.*

"You're right, 'Riolu-Man' does have a midlife crisis vibe to it."

The both of them chucked at Nate's comment before they went back to silence. Nate soon finished reading his script.

~The lines for Riolu-Kid sound right this time, and the ending makes sense. Was this the intended ending for the movie?~ Nate wondered.

Nate skimmed through his script again, looking at what lines and actions he needed to take. His lines were easy to memorize and the most motion he had to do was command Riolu in combat. The pokémon battle also looked fairly simple, Riolu had two moves with a type advantage over Brycen's acting team. A scripted battle was loads easier than the real thing. A sense of unease filled Nate though, even if it was scripted, multiple cameras would be pointed at him. If he messed up once, Pokéstar Studio would fall apart. Nate decided to try practicing his part as much as he could.

"Hey Riolu, you want to rehearse?"

Riolu didn't respond. It looked as though he were staring beyond the piece of paper in front of his face. He was stuck in some trance, deep in thought and eyes unblinking.

"Uh, Riolu?"

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

Harper hated himself. Now that he had some time to think for himself, he realized just how many close encounters he faced. He already promised himself to be careful and yet again he was an inch close to revealing his identity. Do people in this world know the concept of human-turned-pokémon? The Pokémon franchise was familiar with people turning into pokémon, their spinoff "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon" was proof of that. The problem was that it was a spinoff. Harper knew he was in the mainline game. The story from Nate about the Herdiers sounded extremely similar to what he played through before his death.

Would he be taken away if people found out? Be tested on? From the movies he'd seen in his past life, anything alien was immediately taken by the U.S. government to be experimented on. Since Unova was based on America, Harper assumed the same thing would occur. He didn't want to be taken away when he was finally doing what he wanted to do his entire life. Harper almost slipped up several times in front of a few people. Beartic especially was an issue. He didn't know whether Beartic was dense like packed ice or was aware but never said anything about it. Either way, Harper's clumsiness needed to stop. His literacy was the only secret that he was ever going to reveal. He knew that his desire was to see his real name in the credits but if that were to happen, everyone would know who he was.

~Like what kind of name is 'Harper' for a pokémon? If a riolu had a name it would be something like 'Anubis' or 'Lulu'. Harper is such an odd, human-sounding name for a Pokémon. It'd be like giving Snivy a name like Bo-~

A hand waved back and forth between Harper's face and his script. He looked up and saw Nate.

"You ok? I asked a question but you've been staring at your script for a while."

Harper grabbed a blank paper from a stack given by Vincent and wrote an answer.

*Sorry, just thinking. What was the question?*

"I wanted to know if you'd like to rehearse with me. I don't know how much time we have before we have to film the scene but I want to try this out at least once."

Harper gave a thumbs up, standing up from his seated position. He still remembered his parts and when to use each move. Practicing the scene was more for Nate than it was for him, and that was fine. He knew that Nate would do a hell of a better job than Liam, he was the protagonist after all.

Nate walked to the side of the set and placed his bag and pokéballs down before walking back. "I'm not going to summon you back into your pokéball for now. I want you to see if I'm doing anything wrong, ok?"

Harper nodded. He stood next to Nate as if he were already released from his pokéball.

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

"Ok, how did it go..." Nate muttered to himself, remembering each sequence of the film. "The intro monologue plays out, A place of never-ending smiles, everyone's ideal place to play, yada yada yada. Brycen starts to attack with his Pawniard and then I hop in..."

Nate shifted into a heroic pose, hand on his hip and the other pointing at the nonexistent villain. His rapid movement surprised Harper but he regained his composure. He never thought that Nate would get into character so quickly.

"Hold it right there!" Nate firmly shouted. As quickly as he shifted into character, he stopped his hero character to say Brycen's part.

"And then Brycen turns around and acts surprised, asking who it is, and then my line..."

Nate got into a different heroic pose, his left hand splayed open in front of his face and his right arm hanging stiff behind his back. He leaned backward slightly and said his next line.

"The Messenger of Truths and Ideals, The Riolu-Kid enters! Stop right there, Brycen-Man! I cannot allow your mischief!"

"And after Brycen says his lines, I say my comeback and then I summon Riolu."

Harper looked up as Nate finished his sentence, and the trainer looked down at the same time.

"Riolu, go!" Nate yelled, pretending to throw a pokéball.

Harper ran in front of Nate and assumed a battle posture.

"Use Force Palm!"

Harped lunged at the imaginary Pawniard and as he used Force Palm, he heard someone's voice behind Nate.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I need to tell the both of you something."

Nate and Harper turned around to see who it was. A man wearing a hoodie and jeans was standing outside the abandoned movie set. He walked closer to the two actors, his walkie-talkie creating noise.

"Hey Smith, what's your 20?" A voice echoed from the device.

"I'm over at the Castelia City set to tell our new actors to get to the makeup station," Smith responded, his walkie talking started beeping. "Shit, low battery already? Hey, I'm going to need a hot brick when I get back, copy?"

"Copy," The walkie-talkie clicked, disconnecting the line between the two.

"Welp, you overheard me," Smith sighed as he holstered his walkie-talkie to his waist. "Get to the makeup station, we're gonna film soon."

"Darn, ok then," Nate huffed. He was annoyed that his rehearsal was interrupted but he couldn't argue back.

"Now that my job's done here, I'm gonna go take a 10-2."

"10-2?"

"It's film lingo for a bathroom break, take a guess what the 'two' means." Smith made his way to the bathroom, one situated a ways from the movie set.

Nate's face scrunched up, realizing what the film crew member meant. "Hey, Riolu. Do you know where makeup is?"

Harper nodded. He gathered his papers and walked at a brisk pace, waving his paw to tell Nate to follow along.

"Wait! Hold on!" Nate grabbed his bag and flung it over his head. He grabbed his pokéballs and sprinted to Harper, trying to catch up.

The both of them headed over to makeup. Harper never thought of it much, but didn't makeup have their own dedicated room instead of a van? Layla should've also had some extra assistants with her. Makeup wasn't a one-person job, he knew from his past job that everyone who was going to be in a scene needed makeup, even the extras. He should ask how she's been handling everything.

"So do we just knock?"

Harper walked up the steps to the vanity van's doors and gave two firm knocks, stepping back after.

"I hope it's those two. I've been waiting for them," Layla's muffled voice came from behind the door. When it opened, it nearly hit Harper's snout like last time.

"And I was right!" She exclaimed. Layla observed Nate with gleaming eyes, eager to work on his makeup. "I've done everyone's makeup already, I just need to do you and one special Riolu..." Layla looked down when she finished her sentence and smiled when she saw Harper.

"There you are!" Layla ruffled his head. "Am I glad to see you again!"

~Why does everyone like petting my head? I know I look like a dog but still,~ Harper waved her hand away.

"Sorry Riolu, I forgot you didn't like that. I can fix your fur after I comb it," She leaned the door open. "Come in both of you, I want to work on our superhero first!"

Nate stepped in first and Harper followed along. The inside of the van was much messier than the first time he was here. All of Layla's equipment was disorganized and messily thrown all over the van. Opened spray cans and bottles were strewn out on the tables, emanating intoxicating smells too strong for Harper's nose.

"Sorry about the mess," Layla apologized as she kicked over a barber cape that was on the floor. "Having to redo everyone's makeup and hair on such short notice barely gave me time to organize. Mr. Stu Deeoh said he found a new actor to replace Liam and he wanted a reshoot ASAP."

"Sorry for the trouble, Miss uh..." Nate said, stepping over empty bottles and trash.

"No need for honorifics, just call me Layla. What's your name? Mr. Stu Deeoh came to everyone in a frenzy and never even mentioned it."

"The name's Nate," He extended his hand out for a handshake. Layla returned one before going back to reorganizing her equipment.

"I'm going to do Nate's makeup first since Riolu only needs a touchup, could you sit down here?" Layla swiveled the barber chair, waving her hand to the seat as if Nate was a king.

"Arceus, don't do that," Nate blushed. He put his gear on another chair and sat down on his "throne".

"I enjoy teasing my clients, makes my job more fun," Layla took out a hair clipper and turned it on, testing its battery. "Let's get started, shall we?"

She started cutting Nate's overgrown hair, the buzz of the clipper dominating over every other ambient sound. Harper wrote down his question for Layla as Nate underwent his haircut. He tugged on her shirt to grab her attention.

"What do you need, Riolu?" Layla noticed the paper that Harper was holding.

*Are you ok? Doing makeup for everyone alone must be hard.*

Layla turned off the hair clipper and the buzzing noise stopped. She stared at Harper's written question, then at Harper, and back at the paper again.

"Did you write this?"

"He shocked me and Vincent as well," Nate added. "I've never seen a riolu or even any pokémon this well-versed before."

"Y'know, maybe I should've expected you could write Unovan if you could read it so well."

Harper shook the paper, still waiting for an answer to his question.

"Oh! Sorry, Riolu," Layla resumed Nate's haircut while answering Harper's question. "Yeah, I'm doing fine. I've had my fair share of sticky situations but this has been the most stressful one. Everyone's jobs are on the line, the entire studio is."

"I never heard why, but how come Pokéstar Studios is struggling right now?" Nate hopped into the conversation. "I remember when they were doing just fine a couple months ago."

Harper was also curious about what happened. The most he heard was from Mr. Stu Deeoh when he ranted about the failure of the last movie about some romance with some pokémon he forgot.

"You're right, we were doing fine a while ago. It's the last movie we made that was an utter failure. I heard that the idea was greenlit without Mr. Stu Deeoh's permission since he was away at the time, family matters in Kalos or something."

"What was the last movie? I haven't been caught up in any new stuff recently."

"A romance film with a Jynx. Why no one questioned the idea, I don't know. I only did the makeup for it because it was my job. In other movies, I have fun doing makeup but that movie, it was just... it was rough."

Nate and Harper tried to imagine a person and a Jynx in love but recoiled in disgust before it fully formed. Harper remembered the conversation Mr. Stu Deeoh had with the ranch couple about the financial troubles that Pokéstar had.

"The director for that movie quit out of shame before Mr. Stu Deeoh could fire him for insubordination. He also blew the budget by a buttload so now we have to save money by cutting any unnecessary usage of electricity like my old makeup station."

"So that's why we're in a vanity van?"

"Precisely."

*What was another "sticky situation" you had?*

"I guess I should say that it wasn't something I personally faced but the entire studio. Do the two of you know Team Plasma?"

They both nodded. Nate's experience was recent with the thievery he witnessed. Harper was well aware of who Team Plasma was. They were the one villain team he faced that made him think about the nature of the games. Their motives weren't evil but their actions were. Harper was curious about how Team Plasma worked in a real-world setting.

"Two years ago, Team Plasma was spreading their message about the liberation of pokémon all around Unova. Pokéstar Studio wasn't safe either, mentioning that we were forcing pokémon to act in movies," She finished Nate's hair and slammed her scissors on a table, scaring Nate and Harper. "It's not even true at all! We ask for permission from both the pokémon and their trainer! We've never taken advantage of pokémon!"

Layla breathed heavily, her rant finished. She saw Nate and Harper's surprised looks and realized she scared them.

"Sorry about that," Layla coughed out, balling her fist in front of her mouth. She grabbed some hair gel and rubbed it on Nate's hair. "It was a hard time. The protests outside the gates could be heard from the other side of the studio. It was only thanks to our last champion that Team Plasma was stopped for good."

"I hope this isn't bad news or anything, but I stopped a member from stealing a pokémon over at Floccesy Ranch a couple days ago. It was just one member though, we told the cops that they might be back so I hope they stop them from coming back."

"Well, you made the right move, taking action and alerting authorities. All we can do is hope the police stop them before they get any bigger," Layla wiped her hands on some paper towels and took out some facial makeup. "I'm going to need you to stop talking, not because I hate you, it's just so I don't accidentally apply anything the wrong way."

When Layla finished, Nate's face was much brighter than it was before entering the van. It was the face of a star.

"Perfect, now it's your turn Riolu," She said, nudging Nate to hop out of the seat and placing the same kiddie stool on it.

"Right! I need to get your costume!" Layla ran to the closet in the back of the van and took out the Riolu-Kid costume from a garment bag. "Put this on while I work on Riolu, ok? There should be makeshift drapes that I made in the back."

Nate grabbed the costume and pulled the curtain, changing into his superhero suit in private.

"As for you, I already trimmed you up so all you need is a little more black dye. Seems your chest is already looking a bit brighter."

Layla grabbed the hair/fur dye and applied it to Harper. When she finished, Nate pulled the drapes open, revealing himself in his superhero glory. Like Liam, the bright blue and yellow exposed Nate. The flashy suit made him pop out from any scene. Unlike Liam though, the costume looked much better on Nate. Instead of a middle-aged man pretending to be a cartoon hero, it looked as if a superhero came to life.

"Wow, you look perfect in that!" Layla and Harper gave him a thumbs up.

"Does the costume need to be this tacky-looking?" Nate pinched the ends of each cape and raised them up. "I stand out too much."

"That's the point, Nate. That's what heroes do."

Nate faced a full-length mirror and adjusted his mask. "Never thought it would look this strange in person. It looked fine in the test screening."

*It's because it fits in with the scene, you're not in the right environment.*

"I guess you're right if you say it like that," Nate replied.

"Since I'm done with the both of you," Layla stated as she opened the door. "Think it's time you get to the set, right? I'll be over in a bit for some final checkups with the others."

"You're right, we should hurry before the director gets mad," Nate grabbed his belongings. "We were the last ones that needed makeup, right?"

"Yup, we'd normally have you put on the costume in a separate area but since we're cutting corners with money..."

"I get it, thanks Layla," Nate said. Harper hurriedly scribbled his words of gratitude and showed them to the lead makeup artist.

"Why, of course! Now you two should get going!"

They exited the vanity van and entered into the movie set around the corner. The place looked exactly like it did the first time Harper arrived, the only difference was the much more tense mental state of everyone on set. He was well aware of how busy a set could be but he didn't know if Nate did. He felt Nate's sense of insecurity rise the longer they stood still. Harper tugged Nate's cape and gave him a grin, signaling that it was going to be fine.

"Oh hey, you're back," Smith stepped out of the merry-go-round. "You came sooner than I thou-woah! Watch out!" He tugged Nate away from the exit door, Harper instinctually dodged despite not knowing what was coming. Another crew member burst the exit door open with his foot, holding a C-stand with both hands.

"Hey, dumbass! You're supposed to call out hot points when you're holding gear! You almost injured the actors!"

"Sorry," The crew member apologized. "I'm still pretty new around here."

"4 months isn't new so stop making excuses and go," Smith pointed to where the other gear was situated.

"Thanks, Chris," Nate fixed the collar of his cape. "What's a hot point?"

"First, you're welcome. Second, a hot point is basically any kind of gear with points or edges like the feet of the C-stand he was holding. We shout out 'hot point' whenever we're passing through a door or moving around a corner so we don't hit anyone by accident. Enough about film lingo, you need to get into position. We're about to film soon, I'll go tell Mr. Pokémonski everyone's here," Smith rushed off, looking for the movie's director.

"But where's my position?" Nate mouthed. "You know where it is, Riolu?"

*You jump out from behind that tree when it's your cue.* Harper pointed at the juniper tree in the distance. Two of them stood side-by-side from a bench. Brycen was also near their spot, readjusting his costume as Layla corrected his makeup.

"Hi Mr. Brycen," Nate waved.

"Hello, Nate. Riolu as well. Did you two have time to memorize your script?"

"We did, it's just that we didn't get to try rehearsing it."

"You'll be fine. Have faith in yourself."

As Layla did some final touch ups to Brycen's face, a voice shouted from the distance.

"Layla! I accidentally rubbed off my foundation!"

"Oh not again," Layla grumbled. "I'll be going now, see you guys!" The makeup artist sauntered off to the extras.

"Nate, you'll be fine," Brycen placed a hand on his shoulder."I can tell you're nervous but don't worry, everyone is. We're filming a fun superhero movie, enjoy the moment, ok?"

"Ok, Mr. Brycen."

"Just Brycen, you're an actor like me. We're in the same league, are we not?"

Brycen patted Nate's shoulder once more and nodded at Harper before walking to his spot.

Nate knelt down and looked at Harper. "Before I put you in your pokéball, I forgot to ask since we never finished our rehearsal... was I good?"

Harper wrote his answer down and showed Nate.

*You're right, we never finished but we didn't need to. We only have one take left but with you, it's the only one we need.*

Harper was suddenly caught in an embrace. As Nate hugged him, Harper's paper crumpled between their chests.

"I can tell you don't like being touched but is it ok just this once?" Nate asked.

Nate was right, he never liked any action that required touch with someone else unless it was necessary. Beartic giving him a ride on his shoulders was one example. He also hated how everyone kept trying to pet him without asking, not that he would say yes anyway. Nate, however, was asking during what was probably the most nerve-wracking moment of his life. A prestigious movie studio and everyone who worked there depended on his talent. Harper decided he should let Nate's impulsive decision slide. He leaned into the hug, giving Nate a pat on the back.

"Thanks, I appreciate it," Nate smiled.

A couple more seconds passed before Nate released Harper from his hug. Smith came back and offered to grab Nate's gear and Harper's writing utensils, saying he would place them somewhere safe. Nate took out Harper's pokéball and held it in front of him.

"You ready?"

Harper nodded, he pressed the pokéball's button and was sucked into the device. Nate latched it onto his waist and waited for further instructions from the director. Mr. Pokémonski emerged from the back of the set and sat down on his director's chair, megaphone in hand.

"Everyone!" He shouted, alerting everyone in the movie set. "This is our last shot and we're makin' it count! Everyone applaud Nate, our new 'Riolu-Kid' for takin' the role on such short notice!"

The set burst into applause. Claps echoed through the fake amusement park, words of positivity and encouragement reverberated towards Nate. Harper noticed that the loudest applause was from the villain of the movie, Brycen himself. Nate bowed his head and gave an awkward smile, thankful for everyone's support.

When the applause stopped, Mr. Pokémonski tapped his megaphone and spoke again. "We're startin' now so everyone get to your positions!"

"Lights!" The lamps gave a muffled thud, and bright lights shone on the scene. "Cameras!" The camera crew leaned their gear closer, prepared to film the actors and actresses.

"ACTION!"

The clapperboard snapped, Pokéstar's last remaining film rolled. Vincent, who was on standby, took the director's megaphone and read the monologue.

"A place of never-ending smiles! Everyone's ideal place to play! The amusement park!

But a threatening shadow lurks over this happy place... The stage is set for trouble...

However!

It's darkest just before the dawn!

A hero has appeared on the scene! And that hero's name is...

Riolu-Kid!"

"Mwahaha!" Brycen-Man laughed maniacally. "Go, my pokémon! Unleash your destructive power! Demolish everything in this amusement park till nothing remains!"

Brycen threw his pokéball into the air. Pawniard jumped out of the metal ball, charging up his first attack. His arms shone brightly with Steel-type energy as he shot a Gyro Ball into the extras. Everyone dodged by a hair, the attack only hitting the side of the Ferris wheel.

As Pawniard was preparing another Gyro Ball, Mr. Pokémonski swiped his hands sideways in the opposite direction of Brycen, signaling Nate to move.

Nate took a deep breath and jumped into the scene. He gave a heroic pose, the same posture as the one during rehearsal. He pointed at Brycen-Man and gave a big smile.

"Hold it right there!"

"Wh-who are you?" Brycen-Man stuttered.

"The Messenger of Truths and Ideals, The Riolu-Kid enters! Stop right there, Brycen-Man! I cannot allow your mischief!"

~Perfect! Just like the script!~ Harper complimented.

"An amusement park… A place of idle dreams or, perhaps, ideal dreams... I have no use for either ideals or dreams!"

"We'll see about that! Go Riolu!"

Harper jumped out of his pokéball after Nate tossed it in the air. He hit the ground in an Iron Man landing pose. Harper wanted to try a different pose that was more heroic than his last and Iron Man's was the most iconic superhero landing. He couldn't help but flash a grin, he always wanted to do that as a kid.

"Riolu, Force Palm now!" Riolu-Kid commanded.

Harper dashed towards Pawniard, Fighting-type energy gathering in his palm.

"Pawniard! "Dodge and use Brick Break!" Brycen-Man snarled.

Like last time, Pawniard was too slow to take Brycen-Man's commands into action. Harper slammed his paw on Pawniard's chest. Fighting-type energy burst out and shot Pawniard into the merry-go-round, the same spot Harper launched him last time.

"Tch," Brycen-Man scoffed. He took Pawniard's pokéball and summoned him back in. "Just a single hit to KO my pokémon... You're pretty good, Riolu-Kid! Despite that, however..." Brycen-Man clutched his other pokéball. "You will be brought down to your knees before me when I end you with my dark, secret arts!" Prepare to be finished!"

"Bring it on!" Riolu-Kid declared.

~Nice! The movie's finally going as intended!~

"Well said Riolu-Kid! My dark, secret arts enter! Take them and be gone!" Brycen-Man threw his second pokéball in the air, this time Vullaby entered the scene.

"Use Feint Attack!" Brycen-Man yelled. Vullaby charged her attack up, and a muddy black color surrounded her wings. She ran up to Harper while drumming her wings up. Now aware of Feint Attack's speed, Harper tensed the muscles on his body, prepared for the blow. When Vullaby's attack connected, Harper was able to withstand the damage. He took her surprised expression as a chance to dash towards Vullaby.

"Nice job, Riolu! Now use Ice Punch!"

Ice gathered around Harper's fist, Vullaby tried to dodge but the drop in temperature in the battlefield caused her to shiver. The impact of his Ice Punch froze Vullaby's breast feathers and sent her rocketing to Brycen-Man's feet.

"Arrgh..." Brycen-Man growled. "Braving my secret arts to take out my pokémon with one hit..."

"Don't you get it, Brycen-Man?!" Riolu-Kid argued. "This is an amusement park filled with the ideals of people! Be on your best behavior and go home!"

"Very well. I shall pull back today," Brycen-Man summoned Vullaby back. "You may be the Messenger of Truths and Ideals. But I am Brycen-Man, the Masked Man of Reality and Phantasm. Mark my words, Riolu-Kid."

Brycen-Man fled the scene, and people emerged from the remains of the damaged amusement park. Seeing the fight between hero and villain and seeing justice triumph caused the crowd to cheer.

"Thank you, Riolu-Kid!"

"You're so cool, Riolu-Kid!"

"I love the Riolu-Kid!"

"Brycen-Man, the Masked Man..." Riolu-Kid mused. "What is he planning to do?"

The cheers continued as Vincent spoke the ending monologue. This time, reading the intended version.

Teaching Brycen-Man, the Masked Man, a lesson, the Riolu Kid saved the amusement park.

Having spoken in a daring tone, Brycen-Man disappeared into thin air...

To protect the truths and ideals of Unova, go on, Riolu Kid!

Fight on, Riolu Kid!

"Aaaaaand... CUT!"

The movie set ended in abrupt silence. The entire crew remained tense even after the tape stopped rolling. Everyone waited for the director's words, unsure if this was the perfect shot.

Mr. Pokémonski snatched his megaphone back from Vincent.

"That. Was. Perfect! All we need to do now is send the footage over to VFX and editing!"

The director took a deep breath and shouted the last words of the day.

"THAT'S A WRAP!"

The cast and crew erupted into a cacophony of cheers and applause, the atmosphere thick with the sounds of celebration. Harper slumped to the ground as he grabbed his sides, legs giving out from lack of energy.

"Woah, you ok Riolu?"

Harper nodded, getting back up on his feet. So much happened in the last couple of hours. Being hired by Mr. Stu Deeoh, training like a pokémon with Beartic, and filming with an incompetent actor was enough action for the day. Meeting the game protagonist equivalent and immediately reshooting the film was more than enough to mentally drain Harper.

"I'm really thankful to everyone I've met here. Mr. Stu Deeoh, Mr. Pokémonski, Brycen, Layla, Vincent, Smith, and especially you. This was really fun even though it was extremely short," Nate looked at the crowd of people, everyone continued celebrating.

"You know, I never originally intended to stay this long," Nate admitted. "If Mr. Stu Deeoh never asked me, I'd probably be in Castelia City right now."

Harper gave a look of regret. Nate was right, he was supposed to be on his pokémon journey and beat Unova's champion. Nate had no ulterior motive for supporting the studio, he simply acted out of goodwill.

"You don't need to look sorry Riolu," Nate noticed Harper's expression. "It's not like Castelia is going anywhere. Besides, becoming famous before I become Champion? Every trainer would kill for that!"

Harper laughed at Nate's response. He wasn't expecting an answer like that but then again, Nate was just a kid.

"What are you laughing at? It's not funny!"

As the two of them socialized, Brycen and Beartic walked up. The actor tapped Nate on the shoulder and Beartic grabbed Harper by surprise, picking him up.

"Hey!" Harper snapped, he realized from the literal icy grip who picked him up and placed him on his shoulders.

"Nice job, kid!" Beartic complimented, handing Harper an oran berry. "What did I tell you? It was gonna work out just fine!"

Harper flicked Beartic's ear. "I guess you were right," He said as he ate his berry, the spot where Feint Attack hit was beginning to numb.

"Brycen!" Nate noticed Brycen and gave a brief bow. "You were right, being an actor really is fun! I didn't need to be nervous."

"And now you've learned how I acted my entire career," Brycen added. "Your performance in front of the camera was impressive for your first time."

"Brycen, is Riolu your pokémon?" Nate wondered. "It was Beartic who brought his pokéball to me earlier today."

"Indeed he is, Riolu agreed to be my pokémon to be an actor for Pokéstar Studios."

"Since he's your trainer, I wanted to ask for a favor."

"Go ahead."

"I'm going to be leaving for Castelia soon and I don't know how long it's going to be before I come back but can I hang out with Riolu a bit more?"

"You can but as it is almost night," Brycen pointed at the wall clock. It was past six o'clock. "Maybe you can spend time with Riolu tomorrow. I heard from Mr. Pokémonski that the premiere is going to be early in the morning. The both of you can hang out after then."

"Then how about a sleepover? I need to go to Virbank City to get some supplies and the Pokémon Center is close by to sleep at."

Brycen chuckled at Nate's quick answer. "A sleepover? Sure, why not? You probably should've asked Riolu first."

"So Riolu, you want a sleepover?" Nate looked up above Beartic, asking Harper.

Harper couldn't think of any reason not to accept. It was going to be a while before he would see Nate again. He also never got to see much of Virbank City, Mr. Stu Deeoh practically made a mad dash towards Pokéstar Studio as soon as it was in viewing range. He also didn't know what a real-life Pokémon Center looked like. Harper nodded.

"Alright! We'll go to Virbank as soon as I get out of this costume!" He sprinted out, looking for Liam's vanity van to change out of his hero suit.

"Kids," Brycen chuckled. "I should remove my costume as well, it's starting to get itchy. Beartic, you know where I'll be."

After Brycen left, Beartic grabbed Harper again and placed him on the floor. "I'll be going as well, I usually help the film crew move heavy gear after filming. You have fun with Nate," Beartic grabbed a large backlight as he left.

~Guess I should go grab Nate's stuff for him,~ Harper thought. He looked around the movie set and found his belongings sitting in the corner with some camera stands. When he grabbed Nate's bag, he realized something.

~Wait, sleepover with a kid? I'm an adult though, am I?~

This was going to be a confusing night.