Hoenn was the trash heap of the world. With as many places to hide as it did, every kind of criminal washed up here eventually. Poachers, murderers, rapists, it held a place for everyone that wanted to vanish. And vanish they did, hidden in the forests or the archipelago. For her part, Jacqueline was content with staying inside the forests, calmly waiting for the chaos to die down. She was confident in her own skills, but it was a fool that believed they could take on a member of the elite four, let alone a champion.

Realizing Lance was roaming Hoenn had been nerve-wracking. Two champions was bad enough, a third that could fly across the entire continent in a day? Jacqueline made sure to keep her mind off it as well as she could. This place was nice enough for it, a small clearing near the edge of a cliff. Hidden away that any passing flyers would miss her, but open enough to allow for a quick escape on Noivern. The forest itself offered enough shade to sneak away if the sky was too dangerous.

Of course, there was only so much she could do if someone like Lance found her. If there was not enough time to react, there was no way to flee. Maybe she could hold them off for long enough to create an opening, but she didn’t hold much hope.

How would they see her? Jacqueline hoped they realized she was better than any garbage.

Of course we are. Jacqueline rolled her eyes.

“You would say so.”

Douceline hovered in front of her, beak turned up, a mocking visage of superiority she played up whenever Jacqueline became too introspective. I speak only the truth.

She adjusted the blanket she was sitting on slightly, then leaned back again. Slaking’s slow and steady breathing made it difficult to stay awake, chest rising up and down behind her. He’d always been lazy, but now he rested whenever he could. A calmth that could only come from a change within his very nature. She missed who he used to be even as she adored who he’d become.

And it was all for her, for her dreams.

Jacqueline sat back up. “I need to do something. It’s a waste of time to laze around.”

Corin huffed something, jumping off Trevenant’s branches to join her. Laurent pointed at the Pokenav hanging on her belt. She’d gotten it from Magma while working with them. How long would it take before the League realized its existence?

She was not blind to the dangers, but it was so useful.

And there are so many secrets hidden inside it.

The temptation of having something to do also kept from destroying it and throwing it in the first bin she could find. It wasn’t long before they were clustered around the screen. Dozens of articles had been and were being written about the recent conference of Hoenn’s high society. Reading about it left a bad taste in her mouth, her experiences with the rich and powerful outweighing the few good experiences she had. It was something to do, though, and they couldn’t be all bad. Maybe. “I wonder how many would sell their friends off for a bit of cash,” Jacqueline murmured. Even here, in the middle of a forest with only her team around, she couldn’t push away the bitterness.

She hated that bitterness.

Coco pushed between them to demand cuddles. She smiled down at him. “You’d definitely sell off your friends if it meant more cuddles.” Coco looked at her affronted. Laurent hummed in agreement, making Coco turn the glare at him.

Slaking groaned something and shifted. It was enough to throw Laurent off, causing him to start squawking at the big ball of lazy fur. Said ball simply yawned in his face.

Audrey snickered from around them, weaving an illusion of Coco holding a snared up Laurent and offering it to Jacqueline. She couldn’t help but laugh. Audrey appeared in front of her snickering. Coco turned away from them all. She gently stroked his shell. “I’m sorry, Coco, but it was funny.” She tried to look at him, but he just turned away again.

Behind them, Laurent squawked loudly at Slaking. He was waving his new leek around in anger. There was not a single scar upon it. His temper was still worse than before, a helpless anger that came from losing something so important and with no way to get it back. She didn’t blame him. There was no doubt in her mind that if he saw that Magmortar again, he’d stop at nothing to tear it apart.

The rest of the family understood and gave him all the space he needed, fortunately. Slaking might even be consciously antagonizing him, if only to let him have an outlet for that anger. He did so for all of them.

Coco was much easier to calm down. “I’ll buy you a new shawl next time I get to a town, how about that?” She stroked the one he was currently wearing. It had gotten dirty and damaged the past weeks. The green had started to fade and there was a tear through the Eevee’s face from an air cutter.

The promise was enough to make Coco turn back to her, nodding in agreement. It also made Ninjask come out of nowhere and start loudly buzzing in outrage. “I spent an hour looking for berries for you. I’m not doing that again,” she said firmly, though she had no doubt that the smile she was desperately pushing down was visible on her face. It had been exhausting, though, and she didn’t doubt that some of the exhaustion she felt now was a result of trudging through the dense forest.

And the Storm-Tamer appears. Oh, how I wish I could delve into his mind.

Jacqueline looked back at back at the screen, still stroking Coco with one hand. Ninjask pushed his way below the other. Laurent had calmed down from his one-sided argument with Slaking and jumped onto her shoulder.

“With the stories you tell about him, I wonder if you’d make it out,” Jacqueline responded, reading through the article. It was hard to remember he was a child, scarred as he was. It was easier to remember in moments like this, reading about his interest in history. The photo accompanying the article helped her believe that what was written was true. He had a spark in his eyes as he looked up at one such piece of history. Jacqueline had never had the honour of meeting Morma.

You should not hate yourself for this. Douceline moved to hover in front of her. Laurent started grooming her hair. It is not strange to wonder what could have been.

“It’s just difficult,” she whispered.

It won’t always be so.

“Maybe.”

They resumed reading the article in silence. She found herself rereading the paragraphs multiple times. It was hard to focus.

Shiftry hummed something. She looked at him, then at the part he was pointing at.

“It seems that the trainee has grand plans, which some would consider foolhardy. The Sky Tower is often seen as a dangerous place,” she read aloud. She would’ve continued if not for Corin putting leaves over her mouth. She rolled her eyes and continued to read quietly.

“Grand plans indeed.”

It is not our duty to protect him. He has enough people for that

Laurent squawked loudly in agreement.

“They don’t understand how we work.”

Laurent glared, still squawking loudly. The leek came down gently on her head. He was always so cognizant of his strength.

Sees-Deeply speaks true. There is no we. That would imply similarities between us and them.

Jacqueline stayed quiet. They would refuse to see the truth no matter what happened.

That is because what you believe is not true. Laurent’s voice rang in her head, his low, dulcet tones never failing to make her listen. He held his leek up, a focus in his eyes as he looked into it. For a moment he looked sad, then he steeled himself. He rarely used this technique, draining as it was. Douceline was no doubt supporting him in connecting to her mind, capable with such abilities as she was. If they were attacked now, they wouldn’t be able to do anything.

He looked at her, and they were suddenly one mind. Red-Turn-Feather stood above the bodies, smiling. Nothing but death surrounds her, despair and misery follows her on the heel. Poachers, murderers, garbage steps up behind and alongside her. All together, yet alone. No companions surround them. This was the only truth. Laurent saw deeper than anyone, he would for the family that had been, were, would be.

She saw herself through his eyes. A beacon, bright and perfect. Their brothers and sisters surrounded them, both the living and the dead, always by their side. Shades surrounded them, those that touched, had touched, would touch. Tears that ran down her face showed the truth even as she moved her wing to brush them away. There was no we. Only us and them. The accompanied versus the lonely.

Laurent carefully separated, but a small seed was left behind, letting her know she wasn’t alone. She pulled him into a hug, the others soon joining in. Roots burrowed deep within the ground moved up and pulled the unwilling close, Ninjask for once too slow to escape. Slaking moved around, massive arms surrounding all of them all the while Jacqueline continued to lean against him.

Noivern came down from above, wings covering them as much as she could. Even Douceline deigned to join in, psychic ability connecting their minds, carefully using the distortion to reach even Coco and Trevenant. Audrey appeared in their midst, pushing her muzzle into Jacqueline’s shoulder, forcing Corin to move around to stand on both their shoulders.

There is no we. Only us. And we are perfect.

They sat there, basking in each other’s thoughts. After a while, memories shot through their minds, connected as they were. A little slakoth that fell from a tree into her lap. He never left it.

Dirt being scraped away from above him. Something looking down. Was this death? It was life.

He looked up at the human. There was a surprised look on her face. She pulled the cloth that was wound around her neck and tied it around him, filling the void that lay within. He felt hope.

Carrying her until she grew too large. Now, it was her turn to carry, flying above grand forests and skies

Laughter as she wove illusion after illusion. The first to truly understand her joy when weaving the tapestry

Blitzing through the trees, turning around to laugh as they were unable to catch up. Wait until she can barely see him. Then continue running.

Waves of psychic power tearing secrets from minds to learn until the world was laid bare, only to find a mind that offered a vision.

A forest burned, its inhabitants threatened. A family stood in front of it, protecting something they had no ties to. After many seasons, it unbound itself from the ground.

Rudely gesturing at a boy. Scar on his face. Worried look in his eyes. Hints of a grin on his face. Secrets in his mind. He morphed into a girl as seen from the eyes of a lonely Ralts, a grin on her face and hope in her eyes.

The girl grew older, always seen from the same eyes, even as those same eyes changed. As the girl changed.

The vision blurred and they all glared at Laurent. An apologetic squawk placated them.

It was Ninjask that pulled away from their embrace first, though he stayed perched on one of Trevenant’s branches. Slaking unwound himself from the hug next to lie back down, even as he stayed closer to them than before. Laurent quickly joined him, preening himself while sitting on his chest. Douceline focused back on the pokenav, returning to reading the dozens of articles.

Do you feel like doing something interesting? She asked after a while.

“Depends,” Jacqueline answered wrily. “Whose kind of interesting is it?” Corin hummed at her side, both conscious of Douceline’s understanding of the concept. How many minds would she have torn apart if they had never been there as a soothing influencing? How long until she decided that dying would be worth it to gain the smallest understanding of the powers so much greater than them?

Douceline carefully took control of Jacqueline’s body, guiding her fingers to move through the pokenav. Contacts flickered up, different groups for different purposes.

Tabitha had sent the message just a few hours ago. She hadn’t thought anything about it beyond wondering why he ever thought she’d go along with it. Did he believe she did this for the money? Why would she ever attack a ranger’s outpost?

They should have their attack-dog. Douceline murmured in her mind.

And yet, they were asking her. “We don’t know where she is.” In her mind, an idea formed. If there was one thing that everyone that spent any time in Hoenn learned, it was that the Draconids were obsessed with history. Every single story had to have one of them in it. Zinnia was no different. “It would be something she would do.”

Corin sighed and jumped from her shoulder. Audrey chuckled. “No doubt,” she said, weaving illusions to make them believe the words were spoken. “Predictable.”

It would be a shame if the Storm Tamer died young. That is someone who deserves to be remembered beyond a sad tale of what could have been.

Laurent looked up and squawked in disagreement. He subconsciously held his leek closer. Jacqueline ignored him and stood up. “We’re leaving in five minutes. Be ready for a battle.” There was an assortment of groans, growls and buzzes that signified their agreement and displeasure in some cases. Ninjask zoomed up in front of her, wings beating so fast that the afterimages looked real. He made his eyes as wide as he could.

She rolled her eyes. “One oran berry.”

He immediately zoomed to her pack to start digging

They packed up together, tent and blanket being grabbed and folded. Ninjask was forced to flee, else be trapped inside the bag. He buzzed angrily, but was largely ignored. Corin tapped him on the head, a stern look on his face. It was enough to make him quiet down.

Jacqueline grabbed the pokeballs and returned most of them. Only Noivern remained. It didn’t take long to put the saddle on. “Ready?” She asked, as she got on her back.

Noivern carefully pushed herself off the cliff. For a second, they were in freefall, forcing Jacqueline to carefully hold onto her hat. Then they soared above the canopy. Below them, birds chirped and insects hummed. This was what she lived for. Despite all the danger, all the battle, this small part of wilderness had been kept safe. Deep enough into the forest that few dared to venture into it. Those few that did so with ill intentions found themselves too isolated to flee. And if they could fight back the native pokemon, well… Jacqueline was more than willing to lend a hand.

Her alliance with Magma was nothing but a loose agreement anyway. Breaking it didn’t leave her with sleepless nights, especially knowing they wouldn’t know about it anyway.

She frowned, staying low on Noivern’s back to catch as little wind as possible. If it turned into a fight, the agreement would definitely be broken. What would be the impact? Less funding, that was for sure.

On the other hand, she could simply take whatever she needed from those that didn’t deserve it. There wasn’t much stopping her from going to more populated parts and hunting there, except for the League of course. Though if she was quick about it, she should be fine.

She nudged Noivern to circle around towns and cities. There weren’t many trainers with such an exotic dragon. If the League heard about a trainer flying around on one, they’d send someone after her. Who better than the champion that made his name using dragons?

She’d prefer to avoid getting into a fight with them

It was as Jacqueline neared the Sky Tower that she noticed it. Teleportation. She hesitated, then had Noivern land. She would not go in without clarity.

Douceline was released quickly. “What is going on there?”

Douceline closed her eyes to concentrate. It seems that the Storm-Tamer has been caught in another hurricane.

“Can we do anything?” The should went unsaid.

They are hesitating. Those that could go in are not here yet. These are only the first responders.

The danger was clear.

A boy with a hat, scar on his face. He looked so much older than his years. They’d met fighting Rockets twice. Wasn’t that a sign?

“You can’t-”

The nature of the tower interrupts my sight. I cannot see what happens there.

“We can escape.”

If we are fast, Douceline agreed.

Jacqueline nodded. Douceline was returned, Audrey appeared. “Hide us.”

She immediately began creating her illusion even as she jumped on Noivern’s back. They flew up into the air, towards the Tower.

It was massive, stories carved into the sides all the way up to the top. She’d have loved to take in the sight, but her eyes were dragged to the base. A Mega-Salamence flew around bombarding a small group of pokemon and a single human. They were faltering even as the Salamence came in for another bombardment. “Faster,” she urged, eyes squeezed nearly shut against the wind. They soared closer.

She grabbed the pokeball from her belt, memory telling her which one it was. Corin was running before he completely formed. Audrey wove illusions around them. Ninjask appeared soon after, already hurling all manner of insults and obscenities at their enemy.

She jumped as soon as Noivern got close to the ground, releasing Coco and Slaking at her side.

Corin ran in front of Ash, spinning to make distortion flow up into the air, creating a wall that stopped the draconic energy in its tracks. Noivern flew back up to contest Salamence’s control of the sky.

Ash’s team was battered. Hopefully no-one was dead. It’d be an early end to their tale.

“Durand.” He gasped behind her.

She tipped her sunhat at him, grabbed a pokeball from her waist and released Douceline. Audrey hid the entire action. It wasn’t long before all their minds were connected. Protect us, Coco.

Coco flew up and swallowed a blast of fire.

“You fought bravely, but let me take it from here.”

“No!” He staggered forward, arm bleeding terribly.

Stay close to him, Coco.

“She came for my team. We’re seeing this through!”

There was no use in trying to change his mind. She wouldn’t insult him by trying anyway. Her hand came up.

He hesitated, then grabbed it.

“How far can Zoroark project its illusions?”

Jacqueline had to suppress a smile. Even now he sought the advantage over her. She looked up and estimated the distance. It was well in range. “Far enough. I will follow your lead.”

It was many hours later that they were safe again, far away from the battle and hidden from those that would chase her. Ash was alive, Zinnia on the run. She’d be fleeing Hoenn no doubt.

And Ash had listened. It was such a strange thing, knowing that someone might actually believe her.

Too little too late.

Jacqueline sighed and looked up at the sky. The sun had nearly set and it had turned dark. A lone tear trickled down her face. Corin and Laurent stood by her side. Laurent had his beautiful new leek loosely held in his wing. There was not a scar on it.

The sight tore at her very soul. It didn’t belong with them, not really. What had been a memory of a time before had turned into a tool. What had been scarred had turned smooth.

It was not for them. Durand closed her eyes. It was not them.

Their scars could never heal, not when their souls healed around them.