Beartic gazed up into the night sky, admiring its natural beauty during his aimless walk around the studio. The stars were dimmer here compared to Icirrus City due to the nearby city, its lights somehow penetrating through the infamous fog. There were rare occasions when the fog cleared up, mostly when strong winds blew by.
Tonight was not one of those nights.
Observing the viewable clusters of silver in the sky, he recognized a few famous ones Brycen taught him a long time ago during their Journey.
~Ursaluna Major… Teddi Minor… Lycan Major… Sagittauros… Vulpicula… Heh, I still got it.~
Immediately, Beartic sighed to himself, tilting his head to the ground. He knew that this was just an attempt at a distraction from what was on his mind all night; Harper’s eventual explanation.
From the moment Brycen pulled out the wallet and showed that ID card, the kid fell silent. Was it fear? Distress? Anxiety? Whatever the reason, Harper had found the courage from it to speak up on what he was hiding… assuming he really did hide something up till now. Maybe he gained some sort of memory but felt it wasn't the right moment to explain it.
If the kid needed some more time until he wanted to explain, that was alright. Beartic made the right move in not forcing any information out, and with a confirmation that he would eventually get answers, he could wait a bit longer.
Yet, even long after that conversation ended, Beartic found himself unable to sleep. Instead, he decided to stay up a little longer. All the way until now, he had been outside all night so far, spending time by himself. It reminded him of the nights spent outside with Brycen on the routes between cities in their tent, planning out strategies and tactics with the rest of the team for their next Gym battle. Brycen's stoicism had changed little since their days as League contenders, but it didn't need to. Even though his Trainer didn't show it on the outside, Beartic clearly knew the Ice-type Trainer’s passion burned brightly.
Beartic snorted to himself at the irony.
After walking around the lots some more, Beartic eventually found his way back to Brycen's vanity van. To his surprise, he saw Harper sitting on the doorstep, leaning his head on the side as he looked up.
“Hey kid, how come you’re awake?” Beartic approached the riolu, momentarily surprising him in place with an abrupt turn of his head. “I thought you were sleeping.”
“I was… but I had a nightmare…” Harper rubbed one of the iron plates on his paw.
Beartic sat down on the asphalt beside Harper, bringing a knee close to him “Do you want to tell me about it?”
“It… It has to do with my memories,” Harper reluctantly shook his head. “I’ll… explain it when I’m ready. I just needed some fresh air right now.”
“Guess the both of us needed it,” Beartic chuckled as he looked back up at the night sky, observing the stars again. “I never expected to see you here after my night walk.”
“Do you walk every night before sleeping?” Harper broke his gaze away from the stars to face Beartic.
“Not every night, but every now and then when I feel I need it. Walking at night reminds me of the old days when Brycen and I were getting badges of our own in the Unova Circuit.”
“Brycen was a League Trainer?” Harper leaned forward.
“Of course! Everyone’s gotta start somewhere, right?” Beartic placed his paw forward face-up, summoning a miniature colorless haze on top. “Brycen wanted to prove that Ice-types were powerful despite how many weaknesses we have, and he did just that when we were the finalists in the Unova League.”
“Who… Who did you lose against?” Harper asked carefully.
"Alder, the former champion. His Volcarona alone ground us into shaved ice," Beartic turned his paw, watching the snow piled on top slowly fall and melt in the air. "I can still remember Volca's Overheat like it was yesterday, and it always makes me want a rematch with Volca…"
“Why can’t you?” Harper replied. “Is it hard to find the right time for a battle?”
“Because Volca’s no longer here,” Beartic solemnly explained, noticing Harper slightly flinch. “He was afflicted with a horrible illness, but knowing Alder, Volca lived the best life he could till the end. He passed on knowing he was the strongest Bug-type in Unova’s history, and I can vouch for that myself,” He grinned, pointing at himself to lighten the mood.
Harper shrunk into his seat, clearly guilty for bringing up the topic. Beartic lightly slapped him on the back, easing him. “Hey, don’t feel bad, we’ve all come to terms with it. Alder and Brycen are still good friends, and so are our teams, though it’s been a while since I last saw them.”
“That’s… good to hear,” Harper sighed, both somewhat relieved and yet still uneased.
With the conversation point reaching an end, the two fell silent, but Beartic held no desire to keep it that way. The kid had gone through a lot just to speak up when Brycen brought that mangled wallet back. If Harper felt pressed to reveal something, then maybe Beartic needed to share something in return. He never forgot that promise he made to Harper about his regret he held about the Unova League Siege.
“...Hey, kid,” He spoke up through the silence with a heavy tone. Harper’s ears swiveled first before his head followed. “Remember when I said that I’d tell you about what happened two years ago?”
“The story with Team Plasma’s siege?” He asked carefully.
Beartic nodded. “I think it’s time that I tell you about it, at least from my perspective.”
“Really?” Harper took note of Beartic’s serious attitude. “Why?”
“You’re still finding the time to explain your story, but I feel ready to tell mine now,” Beartic bluntly told the riolu. “So, how much do you already know about the event?”
“I… don't know a lot,” He rubbed his steel plate again. “I only know that Team Plasma attacked the League and someone stopped their leader.”
“You’re correct, but there's something else I want to tell you that happened in between,” Beartic placed a paw on his left arm. “There was a pokémon I battled that day, and I failed to help her.”
Harper frowned at the end of his statement. “Is she…?”
“She’s not dead,” Beartic quickly answered, debunking the kid’s thought. “I failed in that I couldn't persuade her to leave Team Plasma.”
He shifted his paw to his bicep, moving the white fur out of the way and revealing a thin, blackened scar grazed horizontally on his skin.
“A… scar?” Harper breathed out with widened eyes.
“One caused by a Night Slash,” He rubbed his fur back in place, hiding the faint cut away. “Dark-type moves are powered by raw, unfettered emotions and since this one never healed up all the way, it shows how genuine her hatred was.”
“Do… you want to tell me this? You don’t have to…” Harper rubbed the back of his neck with unease.
“No, I want to,” Beartic insisted, a sigh escaping out soon after. “I promised I would, and now is the time.”
When Harper gave no sign to deny listening, Beartic began his story. “I’ll start at the beginning and then how I came across her for the first time and… and how I never saw her again.”
----------------------------------------
Beartic jumped out of his pokéball and faced one of the Seven Sages that stood in a row in front of all the Gym Leaders. A guttural sound rumbled deep in his chest as he raised a paw up, ready to strike. The other Gym Leaders’ aces all stood together, equally ready to fiercely strike without hesitation.
“Hilbert, Holder of the Light Stone!” Drayden shouted, keeping his unattended stare at the enemy. “Proceed through the castle and stop Team Plasma once and for all!”
Without another word, the fated Trainer rushed down the opulent castle hallway with his Samurott. When he turned around a corner, one of the Sages scoffed at Drayden.
“You seriously believe that one boy is going to stop our King from ruling Unova?” The sage scowled as they all released their pokémon, all of them ready to attack at command. “N will take him down in an instant!”
“Hilbert has been chosen by one of the Twin Dragons!” Drayden shouted back, startling a few of the Sages. “As the Gym Leaders of Unova, we must do what we can to save it against terrorists like you!”
“We are not terrorists!” Another Sage snapped back. “We are only taking what N rightfully deserves as our King so don't get in our way!”
“There's no convincin’ ‘em, Dray,” Clay frowned as he tipped his hat up. “Let’s bury ‘em down to the ground!”
The atmosphere in the castle room grew thick with tension, reminiscent of a classic Unovan Western standoff. Every Gym Leader, Sage, and Pokémon present stood frozen in place, their eyes locked in a tense gaze. Each figure stood poised with breaths held as they anticipated the moment when one would make a move, ready to react at a heartbeat’s notice.
The silence grew heavier, with the only sound being the distant echo of heartbeats and the rustle of feathers and fur, as all waited for the first spark of action to ignite the standoff. Beartic clenched his paws tighter as ice chilled around them, the tension grew unbearable not only for him but for everyone here.
“Haxorus! Dragon Tail!”
“Icicle Crash!”
“Use Aerial Ace, Swanna!”
“Bulldoze ‘em flat!”
“Knock them over with Wild Charge!”
“Leavanny! String Shot!”
“Quick Attack them into a Crunch!”
The commands to attack the Seven Sages rang out together and all the Gym Leaders’ aces used their moves first before the enemies’ pokémon. By the command of his Trainer, Beartic slammed both of his paws to the floor, erupting a massive ice pillar that crashed into the ceiling. The struck surface froze in an instant and formed clusters of icicles that soon rained down on his enemies.
As the enemy bouffalant in front of him shook their massive afro in a futile attempt to dislodge the icicles, Beartic seized the moment. He lunged forward and grasped the bouffalant's horns, anchoring them firmly in place. The bouffalant thrashed violently, trying to break free from Beartic's iron grip, but he tightened his hold in response.
“Blind it with Frost Breath!” Brycen commanded, dodging a stray Air Slash from a mandibuzz battling Skyla’s Swanna.
Opening his maw, Beartic charged Ice TE deep within himself as he wrestled the bouffalant in place. To ensure the bouffalant remained in place, Beartic encased the horns in a thick layer of shimmering ice from his paws, securing his opponent down.
“What are you doing?!” The Sage exploded with fury. “Use Head Charge!”
With a powerful snort reverberating from their flared nostrils, the bouffalant dug their sturdy hooves into the ground, surging forward with imposing strength. Just as they began to gather enough momentum for a full charge, Beartic swiftly countered, unleashing a chilling blast of Frost Breath aimed squarely at the bouffalant's face. The frigid air instantly enveloped their eyes in a thin layer of ice, sealing them shut.
“Brycen! Go after Hilbert!” Drayden shouted through the collision of his Haxorus’s Dragon Pulse and their enemy’s Energy Ball. “I just saw their Shadow Triad heading after him, I fear that they might go for an ambush! All of us will cover for you!”
Beartic swiftly knocked the bouffalant aside with a flurry of blows from Icicle Crash, casting a quick nod toward Brycen, who mirrored the gesture. Without hesitation, they charged down the castle hallway, leaving the Gym Leaders to fend off the Seven Sages in their stead.
When they turned the corner, Brycen stuck his arm out, halting Beartic. He saw his Trainer scowl at the sight of a masked figure with flowing white hair, staring deeply into one of the castle’s rooms.
“You! Stop right there!” Brycen shouted at the Shadow Triad member, grabbing their attention away from whatever was in the room.
“If you were looking for the holder of the Light Stone, he has already passed by,” The Shadow Triad member clarified. “By now, he should have met with our Lord N in the Throne Room. The other Shadow Triad members have allowed him in and are guarding the front now.”
Two visceral roars rang from above, shaking everything from the ground to the walls. Beartic and Brycen stood firm against the rumbling, focusing on the enemy in front of them.
“That was the Twin Dragons…” Brycen muttered after the dragons’ cries died down. “We need to get to Hilbert before it gets worse.”
“The fateful battle between our Lord’s Zekrom and Hilbert’s Reshiram has begun,” The Shadow Triad member slid their foot back and raised an arm back with the other holding a pokéball. “And for that, I will not allow you to interfere.”
"And I won't allow you to get in our way," Brycen firmly stated as he shifted into an open-palmed stance. "Stand down if you want to stay intact."
“I’m afraid that I cannot, and I will use any means to keep you away,” The Shadow Triad Member tossed their pokéball on the floor, summoning a purple and yellow pokémon in front of them.
“Liepard, you know what to do,” The Shadow Triad member dashed forward at Brycen, throwing the first punch that the Gym Leader narrowly avoided.
Without warning, the enemy Pokémon's body glimmered with Normal-type energy and struck Beartic, sending him crashing into the room where the Shadow Triad member had just stared into. Beartic found himself slammed against the wall of a skateboard ramp that sat beside a half-basketball court. The space belonged to a child and was filled with toys like train tracks, building blocks, and colorful balls scattered about. Once Beartic regained his footing, he pushed back off the ramp as he heard the sound of fists flying and connecting from the other side of the entrance.
“Beartic! Keep their pokémon at bay!” He heard Brycen shout through his fight as Liepard rapidly approached Beartic.
“You!” Liepard shot at him with pure bloodlust, her claws exuding with Ghost TE. “I won’t let anyone stop Team Plasma!”
Just as Liepard aimed to catch Beartic by surprise, he swiftly slammed both paws onto the ground, creating a wall of ice in front of him. This frosty barrier effortlessly absorbed the Shadow Claw attack, leaving three distinct slashes etched into its surface.
“Coward! You’re a traitor to all pokémon!” Liepard lashed out with consecutive Fury Swipes, digging deeper into the ice wall.
Liepard’s swipes came in a blur, but Beartic timed his move perfectly. With a powerful backhand Brick Break, he smashed his paw through the wall and struck her squarely in the chest, propelling her away from him. Beartic pushed the rest of the wall down, shattering it on the floor into a million pieces as he approached the cat pokémon.
“You’re fighting for the wrong side! He fiercely pointed out. “Pokémon choose to stay with humans to learn and grow together!”
“You expect me to believe that?!” She rasped out a Snarl, shooting Dark TE at Beartic, who defended it with an ice-covered cross block. “Team Plasma saved me from some dumb children from being treated like a damn pet!” She forcefully spat the last word out.
The ice on Beartic’s arms crept over and onto his paws, beginning to form two clear balls. Beartic clapped his paws together, smashing it into a fine powder and sending it forward in Liepard’s vicinity. As she struggled to see through the haze, Beartic opened his mouth and a light blue orb of energy formed in front of it. In a split second, he fired multiple light blue beams of energy from the orb at Liepard. Forming stars above her, Liepard shot Swift at the multitude of Ice Beams at their starting point, creating massive freezing explosions between her and Beartic.
"No child ever sees their pokémon as a pet! They see pokémon as friends! As allies to accomplish goals together!" Beartic argued back, remembering his first encounter with Brycen all those years ago.
“That’s a lie! Why do you like your human so much if all you do is stay in pokéballs?!” Liepard growled back from the snowy mist. “I used to be like you but thanks to Team Plasma, I’ll fix it! I’ll fix everything!”
She snuck away from Beartic’s line of sight and Sucker Punched him in the face, staggering him off balance. He whipped his arm back, hitting her away from him.
“We don’t stay in pokéballs! We stand beside them against any obstacle!” Beartic rubbed his face where Liepard struck him.
“Well, so do I! Team Plasma helped me to understand that they only want to help pokémon to be free like they should be!”
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“Do you not see the irony in that?!” Beartic retorted. “Team Plasma is just using you!”
“What about your Trainer?! Are you helping your Trainer because he ordered you to? I’m helping Team Plasma out of my own free will! Can you say the same for pokémon enslaved by Trainers?!”
Beartic slammed a foot on the floor, summoning an Icicle Crash from below and shooting two icicles upwards at Liepard, who sidestepped the attack at the last moment. He then grasped onto the two upper tips and pushed, snapping them clean off. Beartic launched them at Liepard with full force after she had dodged, hitting her twice with the blunt sides.
“Pokémon are not slaves!” Beartic retaliated. “We choose who we want to stay with and who to leave! You still have that choice!”
“Hah! Choice!” Liepard spat out blood onto the floor before scoffing at him. “There’s no reason to give me a choice! The completion of our goal is inevitable because our King N is unstoppable! He told me himself that I am one with his ambition! For that reason, I’m sticking with Team Plasma until we achieve the complete liberation of all pokémon!”
The final exchange was nigh, and despite having the advantage over her, Beartic still couldn’t convince her out of Team Plasma’s propaganda. If the terrorist group’s leader himself had directly spoken to her, then her corrupted beliefs had rooted themselves deep into her psyche.
There was little that Beartic could do to help her, but that didn't mean he would stop.
Before he could muster up the remaining strength he had to battle Liepard, Beartic heard a dull thud as a body hit the ground from across the room. He and Liepard glanced toward the entrance, where Brycen had launched a spinning kick into the side of a Shadow Triad member, successfully securing victory in their one-on-one duel.
“You… have fought well, Gym Leader Brycen,” The member grunted, holding where they were kicked in pain. “I admit defeat.”
“Let us go to Hilbert, we have wasted enough time here already,” Brycen turned to Beartic, ignoring his opponent.
“Are you kidding me?!” Liepard hissed at Beartic after running to the Shadow Triad member’s side. “You’re just going to leave?!”
“It looks like their pokémon has not realized their defeat,” Brycen pointed at Liepard. “Beartic, finish this.”
Beartic turned to Liepard, charging Ice Punch as he took one begrudging step at a time.
“Go ahead!” She snapped, her teeth barred at him. “Do exactly as your Trainer forces you to! Finish me off! Just know it’s not gonna be easy!”
Beartic took one deep breath in and out, frost accumulating around his mouth as he did so. He released his Ice Punch, confusing not only Liepard, but Brycen and the Shadow Triad member as well.
His Trainer’s eyebrows furrowed, but he seemed to understand why Beartic refused to attack. Brycen remained silent, his attention now at Liepard, who growled again as Beartic steadily approached her.
“I'm giving you one last chance, Liepard,” Beartic asserted, trying to not make any sudden movements. “You can walk away from this. I can find your original Trainer.”
"I. Don't. Need. Them!" She hissed each word. "I never did! How stubborn are you?!"
“I’m not going to stop until you see the truth,” He answered calmly, taking another step forward. “Team Plasma isn’t what you think it is…”
“Who cares what you think it is? You’re never going to stop u—”
Liepard was cut off by a distorted voice that echoed from the Shadow Triad member's belt. Everyone’s heads turned to the communicator as they strained to make sense of the words.
“…krrt… Ghetsis has been captured, retreat immediately… I repeat… Ghetsis has been captured, retreat immediately… krrt…”
“N-No…” Liepard stepped back from the voice in quiet disbelief. “No, no no, this can’t be happening…”
“I must take my leave immediately,” The Shadow Triad Member slowly stood up, hiding the physical pain from their defeat. “We are leaving, Liepard.”
“W-What?!” Liepard sputtered, glancing at Beartic before flaring with Dark TE. “Wait! We’re just gonna leave them here?!”
“I said we are leaving now,” The Shadow Triad member unlatched their pokéball and aimed it at her.
"It's all because of you and your stupid Trainer!" Liepard cursed at Beartic, spiraling down into insanity. "If you and your Trainer weren't here, we could've helped Lord Ghetsis defeat that kid! We could've stopped everyone who attacked us! WE COULD'VE WON!" The Dark TE that burned around Liepard condensed into her claws and she sprung forward, blasting a razor-sharp Night Slash at Brycen.
"Brycen!" Beartic subconsciously dashed in front of his Trainer and received the attack full force, cutting a deep gash on his arm. Beartic knelt on the floor, holding his wound shut, blood seeping out between his digits.
Before Liepard could shoot another ranged attack at them, the Shadow Triad member recalled her back into her pokéball. The device continued to violently shake even as they hooked it onto their person.
“Goodbye, Gym Leader Brycen and his ace, Beartic. Until we meet again…” The Shadow Triad member shifted a hand up to their chest, forming an unknown jutsu and vanishing without a trace, a small circle of dust blowing where they stood prior.
Brycen grabbed Beartic’s pokéball and held it forward. “I need to summon you back to stop the bleeding.”
“I… No, the bleeding’s not that bad,” He muttered, tightening his grip on his injury. He still felt the Dark TE festering on his skin’s surface like fire fueled by hatred. Going back into his pokéball right after his confrontation with Liepard felt… wrong.
“…Very well then, I assume you had a reason why you didn’t follow my command to finish the liepard off at the end, but you were injured regardless,” Brycen ambled underneath his arm and pushed him up. “We need to find the others and get you medical attention.”
Stumbling out of the demolished kids' room, Beartic spotted a figure at the far end of the hallway slowly coming into view. By the gray overalls and white beard, he deduced the person to be Drayden. Beside him was a Haxorus, the sharp plates on his head now blunt and chipped on both sides.
“Brycen! What happened to you?” Drayden ran to Brycen, catching his breath. “We heard Ghetsis was defeated and the other Gym Leaders succeeded in arresting the Sages!”
“We were stopped by one of Ghetsis’s underlings before he ran away,” He answered before looking at Beartic. “Beartic needs medical attention for his injury.”
“This doesn’t look good…” Drayden observed Beartic’s cut. “How strong was the move he took?”
“The liepard he battled was no ordinary one,” Brycen “The Dark-type energy from her Night Slash was the strongest I had seen.”
Drayden took a max potion out of his pocket and gave it to Brycen. "Take this for now, it should stop the bleeding until the paramedics can apply stitches."
“Is Team Plasma’s siege finally over?” Beartic asked Drayden’s Haxorus before wincing from the stinging sensation of the max potion.
“From what I’ve heard, yes,” Haxorus nodded before looking down the hallway. “Champion Alder and Hilbert’s friend, Cheren, have made their way to the throne room. We don’t know much more than that right now.”
Beartic sighed to himself, unsure if it was out of relief or shame. Everyone had finally triumphed over a terrorist attack, especially one in the Unova League. If Team Plasma had won, the damage would’ve been indescribable. Their victory eased Beartic somewhat, but it wasn’t a complete win.
The Shadow Triad member got away and so did their Liepard. The pokémon that needed saving the most had slipped away from him. With how elusive those ninjas were, there was no guarantee that Beartic would ever see her again, and she would never have the chance to escape Team Plasma’s grasp.
~I… I just hope she finds some kind of redemption herself…~
----------------------------------------
“...And that’s everything,” Beartic concluded, letting his arm fall to his leg. “The victory against Team Plasma wouldn’t have happened without the help of the Gym Leaders and Hilbert acting as the sole factor, but I could’ve done better to—”
He looked over at Harper to see that he was already fast asleep. At some point during his account of Plasma’s attack, the riolu rested his head deeply into Beartic’s side, quietly breathing the entire time.
“C’mon, kid. Couldn’t you have slept after I finished?” Beartic chuckled with a warm smile as he gently patted Harper’s head.
Even if the kid dozed off in the middle of Beartic’s story, it felt good to finally share his thoughts on the ordeal that had been bubbling inside him for years. He was more than willing to tell Harper the tale once again if he wanted to hear it. Beartic couldn’t pinpoint when Harper fell asleep without him noticing, but he hoped he caught enough of the story to grasp the main idea. If not, Beartic felt confident he could explain it all over again.
“Mmm…” Harper groaned as he began to incoherently mumble, the first time Beartic ever heard him do so. Beartic could only make out two words, albeit cut off.
“...I— Sorr…”
With that, Harper stopped mumbling as he unconsciously leaned closer into Beartic and onto his leg as a pillow. A few seconds later, Beartic felt something wet on his thigh.
A single tear.
Beartic gently moved his paw underneath the kid’s eyes, wiping the tear away. It was way past bedtime for the both of them now, and Beartic slowly picked Harper up in his arms. Carefully placed him on the sofa bed through the window, tucking him in with Brycen’s spare kimono the best he could.
Before he reached for his pokéball on the window shelf, Beartic looked back at Harper, now peacefully sleeping tears-free. Despite his suspicions about the kid’s amnesia, he couldn't ignore the fact that his trauma was real. By the signs Beartic picked up as time passed and from what he had heard just now…
Harper held regrets for someone, but Beartic couldn’t tell who.
Beartic silently cursed himself for not being able to help the riolu as much as he wanted to, but that didn’t mean he would stop.
Once he had his answers from Harper, he’d finally be able to do more.
----------------------------------------
Pure embarrassment and shame washed over Harper as he woke up in his bed the next morning. He felt like a child who had dozed off during a bedtime story, having fallen asleep to Beartic's soothing voice. Unwanted images of the Ice-type Pokémon tucking him in began to swirl in his mind, prompting a groan at each thought.
When Harper finally met up with Beartic in the cafeteria at the studio, he couldn't stop apologizing for falling asleep before the story ended. To Harper's surprise, the polar bear found his apologies amusing and was more than happy to recount the entire tale once more. Finally, Harper was able to hear the whole story.
Listening to the events from the first game Harper experienced as a kid felt almost surreal. He remembered the Gym Leaders rushing in to assist the player, the dramatic moment when he confronted N and captured one of the Twin Dragons, and the final showdown against Ghetsis. The games never really delved into what happened beyond the player's perspective, so it was striking to see the Pokémon world portrayed as a tangible reality.
Beartic’s story raised another troubling question: the fate of Liepard. Harper found himself wondering if this was the same Pokémon that Hugh’s sister lost during his journey in Black and White 2. At that moment, he had no way to confirm it and could only wait. However, considering it was a significant plot point for the game’s rival, Harper couldn’t help but question whether Beartic’s narrative was merely a coincidence. Since Game Freak often crafted their storylines in a formulaic fashion to cater to a younger audience, that seemed like a likely explanation…
“Mr. Harper?” Eve waved a paw at Harper’s face. “You stopped talking for a moment…”
“Wha?” Harper blinked twice before focusing on Eve. “Sorry about that, I got lost in my thoughts for a moment.”
Harper turned back into the present moment, finding himself in the familiar pokémon gym set they had visited before the start of production. It was just him and Eve now, as she had surprisingly requested some time alone with him. Convincing Zorro to allow them this time together took quite a bit of effort, but with Bianca's assistance—despite her own curiosity—they finally secured the privacy Eve desired.
Eve sat back down in front of Harper, tilting her head. “Was it about yesterday when you left early?”
Harper did his best to maintain a cheerful demeanor for Eve after the events of the previous night. While he felt a sense of relief, the weight of needing to find the right moment for his pivotal revelation with Beartic and Brycen, along with the haunting dream of his mother, pressed heavily on his mind. Just a minute or two had passed, and he struggled to keep his spirits up in front of the little Eevee.
“It… Yeah, it is…” Harper answered as he sat down, legs crossed. “Sorry, I didn’t want to disrupt your training like this…”
Eve uncomfortably shifted where she sat, her mouth opening for a moment before closing again.
“Did you want to say something?” Harper asked, noticing her changed behavior. “It’s ok, you can tell me.”
After glancing around in uncertainty, she began to rub her paw on the floor. “There… There was a reason why I wanted to be alone with you this time. I wanted to ask you something without anyone else around…”
Harper blinked, slightly taken aback. “What… What did you want to ask?”
“Mr. Harper, are… are you lost?” She looked back up, her ears twitching nervously.
“Lost?” Harper repeated, puzzled. “What do you mean by that?”
Eve pointed at his eyes. "You looked different when you came to our van like you were trying to hide how you felt."
“How… How did you know?” Harper asked softly, surprised.
“Because… I saw it before with Zorro when… when he got lost,” Eve murmured sadly. “He had the same face as you when he returned that morning. Something… changed him when he was outside.”
“And not just his eye color?”
Eve nodded. “We only noticed that his eyes were blue until after everything settled. When we found him in the backyard, we didn’t care that they changed because he was finally back home.”
“What happened to him out there?” Harper leaned forward.
Eve hesitated, her ears drooping slightly as she recalled the memory. “We… We don't know for sure. He’s never told us, no matter how much we asked. For a while, he wasn’t himself, and he never spoke a word to anyone… not even to me… I tried talking with him whenever I could, but he always stayed quiet. We didn’t want to force it out of him, but we really wanted to know…”
“But he’s not like that anymore, how did you help him?”
She glanced down at her paws, fidgeting nervously. "It took time, but he started to talk again one day. He only said a few simple words at first, but he spoke more and more like he was trying to adjust himself."
“And… I looked lost… like him?” Harper pointed at himself, his voice barely audible.
Eve’s gaze met Harper’s with quiet determination. “I don’t like seeing that face on anyone, and if I wanna be Claire’s partner as a traveling nurse, I have to help you like I did Zorro!”
Harper briefly looked back to where the exit was before facing Eve again. “Is that why you wanted us to be alone?”
Eve nodded, her tail flicking nervously behind her. “Zorro doesn’t like to remember what happened back then, and I didn’t want to talk about him while he was here.”
So her plan to get them alone together was an effort to make him feel better? For a moment, he did forget about the stress of how he wanted to reveal himself to Beartic and Brycen. Just talking together did ease his emotions, even if it were only a little. Still, he appreciated the process Eve went through to help him by remembering what she went through as well.
“Sorry, and thanks, Eve,” Harper grinned, patting the top of her head once. “I’m feeling much better now.”
Eve gave a smile with closed eyes, almost leaning into Harper’s paw. A warm feeling embraced him as he continued to pet, it was refreshing for once to be the one giving the pets instead of receiving them.
A few moments later, Harper mentally shook himself awake, not wanting to be stuck in petting Eve.
“Ehem, anyways, where was I?” Harper awkwardly got back up, trying to recount what he talked about with Eve before their conversation. A moment later, he gave a single clap with his paws. “Right, how you wanted to train your acting further.”
“Yup!” Eve beamed brightly. “I wanted to get better at making faces!”
“You’re doing a fine job so far in that regard, so I’m not sure how to help you further…”
“Isn’t there some way, Mr. Harper?” She asked with pleading eyes. “Zorro’s so much better at it than me, and I wanna beat him!”
So there was some competition between the two fueling her desire to get better? That amused Harper plenty and her insistent gaze was like a barrage of Swifts, forcing him to comply.
“Alright, alright, I’ll try to think of something,” Harper grinned, blocking Eve’s eyes as she giggled. “I’m trying to remember any particular emotions you’ll have to act out in the upcoming episodes…”
The filming date was still a ways off, but the last episode featured a heavy moment between Zorro and Eve's character. Perhaps this was a good opportunity to start preparing Eve for that day, especially since she hadn't really tackled a sad scene effectively until now.
That thought brought a frown to Harper’s face. One of the most effective ways to evoke genuine emotion in a scene is to draw from personal experiences related to that emotion. Just as actors recalled a joyful memory to portray happiness… they needed to tap into a sorrowful memory to effectively deliver sad scenes.
They had just talked about what was likely one of the most distressing moments in Eve and her family’s life, and he didn’t like the implication of what he had to do.
“Mr. Harper? Are you ok?”
“I’m fine, I… I just don’t feel right to ask you this…”
“What?” Eve tilted her head.
“There’s… a scene in a future episode we’re going to film where you need to be… sad when Zorro’s character isn’t with you. The best way to act sad is by remembering a sad memory,” Harper told her, choosing his words carefully. “Are… you ok with that?”
Eve took a few seconds to take in what Harper said before giving a firm nod, her front paws clenching slightly.
“I’m ok with it, I… It’s been a while since it happened anyway… We all moved on from it,” She affirmed, lifting her chin as if bolstering her resolve. “How do I act sad?”
Accepting what Eve said, Harper began to explain what to do. “We’ll start by looking at the context of the scene. Pepper and Hazel have argued with one another over what mission to take and have temporarily split to do each one alone,” He explained, gesturing slightly with his hands to emphasize his point.
Eve nodded as she took in the imagery, closing her eyes as Harper spoke.
“Soon, they begin to miss each other when they complete their missions and how they made up for their weaknesses. The scene is them bumping into each other from a split path,” Harper continued. “Now, remember how you felt when you saw Zorro again when he came back… channel that emotion into this scene… How does Hazel feel when she sees Pepper again?”
Eve's ears gradually drooped, and her posture relaxed as if she were releasing the tension within. With a twisted expression, she opened her eyes wide, her gaze seemed to shimmer and grow larger by the second. They slowly became watery, and the longer she held the expression, the guiltier Harper felt, even his body felt a bit like jelly from faux shame. Eve had already proved her talent in the first moment she started.
“G-Great! That was great!” Harper quickly clapped as Eve stopped her acting with a shake of her head, her ears whipping around. “I— Wow, you’re a natural at this…”
“Really, Mr. Harper?” She spun around in a circle, chest high. “I did it! I can’t wait to show Zorro!”
“I think you have a handle on sadness,” Harper ran a paw through his head, still taken aback by how potent her memory was at influencing her acting. “We’ll… We’ll do some other emotions that you’ll have to do in the future episodes, how does that sound?”
“Sounds good!” Eve grinned. “What’s the next one I can do?”
----------------------------------------
A few hours had passed since Eve showed another level of acting potential, and Harper worked with the other emotions she had less experience with. He showed how to act scared when something spooky happens for the Ghost-type episode in the future to frustration when a move wasn't working right for an upcoming training episode. It was clear that Eve had much less experience with these emotions compared to her initial performance with Harper, making the learning process a unique challenge for her.
“Man, I wish I had brought the script with me,” Harper sighed to himself. “I’d probably find more to help you since I’m only going off by memory right now.”
“But you helped me so much though!” Eve exclaimed, her eyes sparkling with gratitude. “Thank you, Mr. Harper! I had a ton of fun!”
“I-I’m glad that’s the case,” He grinned, happy that she wasn’t disappointed by his efforts.
Harper still believed that he had no skill with teaching in any capacity, it was just the people and pokémon he had helped that had the talent to understand what he said each time. Either way, he was grateful that they didn’t see him in a bad light.
Eve raised a paw, catching his attention. “Mr. Harper, I have one question though.”
“What is it?” Harper replied.
“How do you act in movies with love?” She asked, her tone oddly serious.
Harper sputtered in shock. “I— Wha—”
“Eve! Harper! We’re here!” A voice shouted from the other side of the sound stage.
Harper turned to where the voice came from, where Bianca arrived with the twins. Zorro stood in front of them all, and he rushed to Eve’s side with intent.
“I’m here now!” Zorro exclaimed, skidding his paws on the floor to halt his momentum. “It’s my turn to train with Mr. Harper!”
“I was just asking him something super secret!” She pouted, huffing out of her nose. “Lemme have one more minute!”
“But you already spent so much time with him already!” Zorro complained.
The young pokémon continued to bicker with one another even as their Trainers picked them up into their arms. Bianca approached Harper, who had now slung his whiteboard over his neck.
“How was it with Eve alone?” She glanced over at the twins, who held their pokémons’ paws in their hands and touched them together, as if making up. “I hope she wasn’t as troublesome as Zorro.”
Harper scribbled on his whiteboard and turned it over for Bianca. *There was no trouble at all. She’s more prepared than ever for upcoming production.*
“That sounds great! What did you do to help her out?” She questioned as she readjusted the bag crossing from her shoulder.
Before he could begin writing the first word, his stomach growled, momentarily silencing everyone. Caleb and Claire laughed as their pokémon followed along soon after, much to Harper’s embarrassment.
“Maybe we can talk about it over some lunch, how does that sound?” Bianca asked with a chuckle, hiding her mouth with a rolled hand.
Harper could only give a reluctant nod as the sound of children laughing echoed in the sound stage.