PARAGON

  Hisui Incursion Arc [26]

  Chapter 78 : I Will Touch…

  They continued talking until evenfall, and they ate dinner together in Raphael’s cottage. The Draconid himself had been subsisting on seeds and grasses he’d foraged for across the Icelands, and only after Yura declared that that was no proper meal for “an old man” did he finally accept their offer for more hearty fare. Laden with supplies as they were, Laventon and Akari got to work on a stew that filled the cabin with a mouth-watering scent, and they’d packed plenty of dried meats and winter vegetables to add to it.

  Raphael did not have room to house all of them, but they all had tents. He offered his abode to the girls, but they declined, and instead set up camp just outside, near the terrifying Glalie. The winter wind was supposed to be fierce at this altitude, but due to the nearby hot springs, the air was relatively warm and comfortable.

  Thus, Ash was able to sleep soundly, their group finally reunited after over a month of separation.

  Raphael was gone by the time he woke up the next morning, and according to Sabrina, he’d left shortly after she woke up to resume his exploration of the Icelands. Surprisingly, Yura was awake with her, so he decided to get started on breakfast.

  It was a refreshing sight to see her gazing at the sun again, and though he wanted to ask about her conspicuously absent gauntlet, he figured he’d do it later. He noticed she’d been rather brief when she retold her half of the beacon story. He hadn’t thought about how that may have taxed her when he first thought of the idea, and felt a bit guilty about it in hindsight.

  Soon enough, the others woke up one by one soon after. Rei and Akari were being uncharacteristically awkward around one another, but Ash wasn’t so dense now that he couldn’t see what was going on. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, huh?

  On that note, he tore his gaze from Sabrina.

  Around their breakfast campfire, Rei had placed himself next to Laventon and they seemed to be having a casual conversation, but after serving herself, Akari seated herself right next to him and began eating silently.

  Ash had to stop himself from grinning.

  Now he wondered if he’d done himself a disservice sitting across the fire from Sabrina.

  Once everyone was well into their breakfasts, they began to discuss what to do next. However, on that end, some preparations had already been made. Laventon had reunited with Ash’s group at the Pearl Settlement, and he’d carried with him a message from Cogita, the former leader of the Platinum Clan. Specifically, it was an invitation for Irida, Adaman, and Kamado, the leaders of the other settlements across Hisui, for them to meet her at the ruins of the Platinum Settlement. There, they would devise a joint plan to address Volo and his machinations.

  Ash absolutely refused to allow them to even come close.

  “They’re not strong enough,” he said. “Not even close. We’ll handle Volo.”

  “But…” Akari started to say.

  “I know we lost once,” Riley said. “But Ash has gotten stronger since then. Even with the deck stacked against us before, we survived.”

  “Barely,” Rei commented.

  Riley closed his eyes, then opened them. “Volo must be stopped. Every day that rift remains open is another day Giratina has to victimize another Platebearer and add to its strength.”

  “But Ash himself is a Platebearer,” Laventon said. “The entire reason you three are here in the first place is because you fell into his trap.”

  “Escaped his trap,” Ash said. “We’re not dead. I’m not dead. And I don’t plan on dying any time soon either. But if we have a chance to stop the end of the world—“

  “Or at least delay it by another two thousand five hundred years,” Riley added.

  Ash nodded. “Then I have to take it. And even if none of that mattered, do you really think we’d let Volo get away after what he did to you?” Just thinking about how he’d threatened Yura so casually made his stomach turn. And Sabrina…

  Laventon leaned back, though he didn’t look pleased about it. “So what’s the plan, then? Straight to Mount Coronet after breakfast?”

  “Let’s head out tomorrow,” Ash said. “We’ll head back to the Pearl Settlement to resupply, then continue on to the Platinum Settlement.” He glanced at Yura, who expressed a dazzling smile. “We’ll meet up with the others there…then we’ll ascend Mount Coronet to the Temple of Sinnoh.”

  Rei took a noisy sip of tea before looking up. “Why tomorrow? Why not today?”

  “I have a couple more questions for Raphael. But also…” Ash thumbed behind himself. “We’re at the hot springs. Might as well give them a try, right?”

  “Yeah!” Yura cheered.

  “Makes sense!” Rei grinned. “Let’s do it!” He quickly finished his meal then sprinted off to get the extra towels they’d packed.

  “Perv,” Akari mumbled once he was away, her face glowing scarlet in the morning frost.

  Riley smiled. “We’ll take turns, of course. You ladies can have the first go.”

  Ash, Riley, and Laventon volunteered to clean up while the others got ready for the hot springs. After a bit of investigating from Rei, it turned out there were multiple pools to be enjoyed, conveniently separated by large boulders, so he dashed off to claim one, shortly followed by Yura, Sabrina and Akari.

  “I can finish up here, do you two want to go on ahead?” Riley offered.

  Laventon stood and stretched. “Well, if you insist,” he said with a smile.

  “Nah, that’s fine. I’ll head in a bit later,” Ash said.

  “Got some thinking to do?” Riley asked.

  “Yeah. And training.”

  “Still finalizing that new technique?”

  “Yeah,” Ash said, a twinkle in his eye.

  Once they were done, Riley and Laventon bid him a quiet farewell and left to join the others, Pikachu tagging along with them.

  Ash exhaled, his breath condensing before him, and stared out across the Icelands. The soft sprinkling of snow and cloudy haze obscured the streams of smoke from the Pearl Settlement, and the rift over Mount Coronet could barely be seen against the gray sky.

  As a Draconid, Ash expected Raphael to have specialized knowledge about dragons, and he did not disappoint. He had several theories regarding potential connections between the dragons and the history of the Plates.

  “Giratina and Necrozma are both dragons. And if it wasn’t common knowledge already, dragons are the strongest of all pokémon.”

  That was debatable, but Ash didn’t interrupt.

  “This is likely because they’re the oldest pokémon. The ones created first, as it were. Arceus gifted them with the most power, because it was at the beginning of creation that Arceus had the most power to give. And as it continued to distribute its power, each subsequent generation received less and less of it. I suspect the so-called ‘normal-types’ were created last.”

  Ash had to bite his tongue so he didn’t protest that. He had a more pressing question. “What about the Great Dragon? What do you know about that?”

  Even if she was thousands of miles and years away, Ash was sure Zinnia would welcome any potential new information.

  Raphael raised a brow. “You know about the Great Dragon?” He seemed to be about to ask Ash how he knew about it, but ultimately shook his head and didn’t. He probably just assumed that it was perfectly reasonable for Ash to know about it since he was a Platebearer. “Through my research, I believe I have identified the Great Dragon.”

  “You know its name?!”

  “No, not its name,” Raphael said, waving his hand. “But I believe I know its role.”

  Ash hadn’t expected anything too new from Raphael since Zinnia had already diverged so much from Draconid orthodoxy already regarding the Great Dragon, but he was pretty sure she didn’t know its ‘role,’ whatever that meant.

  Raphael met his gaze. “I believe the Great Dragon is Arceus’ top general. The guardian of its divine realm.”

  “General?” Ash said.

  “Yes. It is a war Arceus is fighting, after all. And if the dragons are the strongest pokémon, it only makes sense that the strongest dragon is Arceus’ strongest soldier. And to the strongest soldier does the most important task fall.”

  “The protection of the Hall of Origin?” Riley asked.

  “Indeed. That’s why I wouldn’t be all too concerned about whatever Giratina is up to. If it ever attempted an assault on Arceus’ personal domain, surely the Great Dragon would be there to stop it.”

  It sounded like Raphael was essentially talking about a third Paragon. Or at least, a pokémon that was comparable in strength to the Paragons.

  But Ash could not rely on wishful thinking like that. He would not. Raphael clarified at the end of his explanation that that was all just speculation with varying degrees of supporting evidence. But even if all of it were true, the Great Dragon, nor Arceus, had protected the young Platebearer at the Platinum Settlement that Volo had burned his hometown to smoke out. So Ash could only assume the same would be true of him and his friends.

  Giratina and Volo needed to be confronted now.

  To that end, Ash inhaled deeply and activated his power. It roared to life in his veins, burning away his lingering fatigue and icy cold in an instant. He closed his eyes and channeled his power, willing it to shape itself according to his design.

  A moment later, a brilliant flash lit up the mountaintop.

  Ash spent a lot longer training than he’d initially planned. It was already late in the afternoon when he finally realized he still hadn’t dipped in the hot springs yet. The others had already returned and gone back to the springs throughout the day, and even Raphael had returned just a bit earlier, though he declared he’d refrain from taking part in the springs with them.

  Ash’s muscles were sore now and he was feeling a bit dizzy, so that was his sign to call it for the day. Groggily, he stumbled back to his tent and undressed, wrapping a towel around himself. He shivered as he stepped back into the frigid cold and quickly padded over to the hot springs behind Raphael’s cabin.

  As he approached the pools, he was met by a haze of warm steam. Unlike the bathhouses of the Diamond Settlement, whose heat he found cloying and sticky, the melding of the warm steam and cold open air made for a truly refreshing sensation, and he eagerly kicked his sandals off. Due to the heat, there was no snow on the ground around the nearest pool, and Ash stepped across its flat, heated surface carefully so he wouldn’t slip.

  The water’s surface was a brilliant turquoise, the sunlight catching the gentle waves and illuminating the crystalline interior. It almost looked like a jacuzzi. Large black rocks lined the edges of the pool with several sticking up from within it, casting shadows over parts of the oblong spring.

  Ash sighed in pleasure as he stepped in, and he let his body sink in up to his shoulders. He could feel hot bubbles blistering up through cracks on the pool’s bottom as he waded deeper into the pool. Swiveling around, he leaned up against one of the rocks and let his body relax.

  The sky above shined a fiery orange, tinges of purple lapping up the horizon as evening crept closer. His eyes glimmered as he savored the dawn of dusk.

  “A-Ahem.”

  Ash glanced over at the sound, then seized backward, whipping around, his heart nearly punching out of his body.

  “Sabrina!” he choked, spring water spraying down his throat.

  He wasn’t looking at her anymore, but from the few milliseconds he had been looking at her, she was submerged up to her eyes, her black hair pooling on the hot spring’s surface.

  “Sorry!” Ash stammered. “I didn’t know you were still in here! I’ll get out now!” He started moving back the way he came.

  “W-Wait.”

  He felt her fingers close around the edge of his towel and he froze, not wanting her to inadvertently pull it off.

  What the hell is she doing?! Ash’s face burned with embarrassment, his heart hammering in his chest. I know she’s bad at social situations but this is—!

  “I-It would be…”

  It would be…?

  She still hadn’t let go of his towel.

  “I-It would be cold if you got out, so…”

  She kept mumbling something but it was too quiet to make out.

  It would be cold if I got out! Ash chuckled nervously. “Haah…right! Yeah, you’re right! I guess I’ll stay! So can you please let go!”

  There was a splash behind him as Sabrina yanked her hand back, thankfully without taking his towel with her. “Sorry!”

  Ash lowered himself deeper into the pool instinctively. “D-Don’t worry, I won’t turn around or anything.” He could feel himself sweating and shivering at the same time.

  “Thanks,” Sabrina murmured.

  Slowly, Ash tried to edge closer to a rock near the pool’s center, trying to maneuver it between him and her. “So, the hot springs’re pretty nice, huh?”

  “Y-Yeah… Very…hot.”

  Ash smirked. She’d come a long way. When they first met again on Paragon Island, she’d clam up whenever he tried to make conversation. This was reminding him of that time. “Guess that’s why it’s called a hot spring,” he smiled.

  “R-Right!”

  Ash closed his eyes as he tried to keep his composure. Why was throwing himself into Volo’s meat grinder attack easier than holding a conversation with this girl? He’d met countless people, countless girls over the years, all across the spectrum of personality. He used to consider himself good at making friends, but Sabrina was the one person he felt like he’d consistently failed at. Them both being next to naked in the hot springs together…probably wasn’t helping either.

  “It is nice though…” Sabrina murmured, and Ash looked up. “After Volo, I…I wasn’t sure we’d find each other again…”

  Ash almost spun around but stopped himself. “You’re the one who saved us! I never got a chance to thank you for that. So…thank you.”

  “It was you.” Sabrina’s voice didn’t waver. “Just…look…at what he did to you…”

  Ash shuddered as he felt Sabrina’s hand fall on his back.

  Right…

  He’d gotten used to it by now, but for her, his body must’ve been a grisly sight.

  White scars laced across the skin of his arms and hands, covered his torso and back, and creeped up the base of his neck, stopping just below his head.

  “So…you knew,” Ash murmured.

  “Not at first. But after I replayed everything that happened in my mind…I realized what you did.”

  Her hand lifted off his back, then he felt a soft punch.

  “Don’t do anything like that again.”

  “I promise,” Ash said. “You won’t get rid of me that easily.”

  “Just think about how much Anabel would miss you. And N and Zinnia. And Cynthia.”

  Ash’s chest tightened as he recalled his friends. It’d been so long since he’d seen them. Spoken to them. And right now, it was impossible to reach them. He smiled. “I don’t think Zinnia would miss me all that much.”

  “She would!”

  “She’d probably laugh at my funeral.”

  “She would not!”

  Ash heard the water lap behind him as Sabrina shifted positions.”

  “I miss them,” she said quietly.

  “Yeah. Me too.”

  “Do you really think we can get back to them?”

  Ash balled his fist beneath the water. “Of course.”

  A few seconds passed before Sabrina spoke again. “How can you be so sure? H-How…How can you be so sure of yourself?”

  Ash rolled the question around in his mind. He wasn’t just saying it. He really did believe they’d be able to return to their time period. But how? “I mean…we traveled back in time… It only makes sense that we should be able to travel forward, right?”

  “No… It doesn’t make sense to me… I…I think…” She trailed off. “I-It’s kind of embarrassing…but if you weren’t here…I think I would’ve given up a long time ago.”

  Ash whipped around. “Embarrassing?! What do you mean—“

  Thankfully, Sabrina was submerged up to her neck, but the sight of her—her glistening hair, her rosy cheeks, her eyes—made him lose his train of thought.

  Blushing, he cleared his throat, glancing away. “W-What do you mean, embarrassing? There’s nothing embarrassing about feeling defeated.” He gave a slight grin. “It’s probably more embarrassing to have such dumb optimism like I do. But when we’re together, it feels like there’s nothing that could stop us.”

  The remaining pale patches of Sabrina’s face swiftly steamed scarlet and she stared at Ash, her eyes shimmering. “By the way, earlier, when I said if you weren’t here, I meant you and Riley…and the others.”

  It took Ash a second to process that.

  “Oh yeah, me too! I meant like! All of us!” He motioned wildly with his hands. “We, like all of us!”

  Sabrina nodded furiously. “O-Of course!”

  Ash had to stop himself from laughing at the ridiculous sight of Sabrina’s hair splashing about in the pool as she nodded. But his smile slowly faded. “I mean, it’s not entirely true. You… You are, like, really, strong.”

  Sabrina pursed her lips and Ash thought she was going to punch him again. “I am not!” she pouted. “I’m just lucky… I’m really just very lucky…”

  “That’s part of being strong. I learned that pretty quickly as a trainer… Got my first gym badge ever because of luck, actually.”

  Sabrina grinned and turned away.

  “Do you know how you got so strong?” Ash suddenly asked. “Like, where your powers came from?”

  “Not strong,” Sabrina corrected.

  “Fine, fine. How did you get so lucky?”

  Sabrina turned to face him again, and for a moment, a look of pure fear flashed in her eyes. Ash frowned, but it was gone as soon as he saw it, replaced by a firm expression of determination.

  “I was born with this ability,” Sabrina began. “But…I got really, really lucky when I was nine.”

  Kanto Region, ten years before the present

  “Do you have your snacks?”

  “Yeah!”

  “Your jacket?”

  “Yeah!”

  “Your nose?”

  “…Huh?”

  “Oh, wait, I’ve got it right here.”

  Her father pulled his hand out of his pocket, grasping his thumb between his fingers, and tapped her on the nose. “There, you can have it back now.”

  Sabrina, aged eight, clapped her tiny hands over her nose and giggled.

  “Ah, here comes Mommy.”

  Her mother swept down the stairs and strode through the hallway toward the front door, each footstep clocking against the floor. She wore a stern expression, her eyeliner and lipstick accentuating her features perfectly. She was tall and slim, and her hair was long, and dyed brown. Her eyes tilted down at her daughter.

  “Ohhh, you look so cute, Sabrina!” She knelt in a flash and grabbed Sabrina’s cheeks, then wrapped her in a crushing hug. “Are you excited for our picnic today?”

  “Yeah!”

  Her dad raised their basket and smiled. “Ready!”

  Her mother rolled her eyes and nodded. “Actually, wait.” She glanced down at Sabrina and smiled. “You think you can hold the basket, Sabrina?”

  Sabrina’s smile morphed as she gathered her concentration, and she held her arms out. A few seconds later, a soft green light enveloped the basket, and her father smiled nervously as he slowly unhooked his arm out from the basket’s handle. Sabrina’s face twitched as the basket’s weight fell solely upon her, and her dad finished slipping his hand out. The basket wavered in midair.

  Just before it fell, her dad’s hands shot out and caught it.

  Her mother clicked her tongue. “Ah, well. Maybe it’s a bit too heavy right now.” She smiled at Sabrina. Ready to go?”

  “Yeah!”

  The wind and sun of the Saffron City suburbs where they lived were perfect today, and Sabrina walked hand in hand with her parents down the sidewalk, humming merrily to herself.

  An older woman was walking toward them down the street, and she smiled upon seeing Sabrina. “So cute!” she beamed.

  “Thank you!” her mother beamed. “This is Sabrina. Say hi, Sabrina.” She tugged Sabrina’s arm.

  “Hi…,” she said, embarrassed.

  Her mother leaned closer to the woman. “She’s actually a psychic,” she said proudly.

  The woman’s jaw dropped and she glanced down at Sabrina. “No way. Are you serious?”

  That was Sabrina’s cue. Her head ached a bit from using her power earlier, but she ignored it and used her power to gently pull the woman’s purse toward her.

  The woman snatched her purse back instinctively and gasped. “Wow! Oh my goodness!”

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Sabrina’s mother smiled haughtily.

  After exchanging a bit more friendly chatter, the woman bid them goodbye. “Have a great rest of your day!” she waved as she passed them.

  Sabrina smiled. She was special. After such a small display of her powers, people just fell in love with her. Strangers, teachers, friends. All of their eyes sparkled when they saw her dazzling abilities.

  For lunch, they had sandwiches and fizzy lemonade, which they enjoyed on a grassy hill that overlooked the city. Other families had similar ideas, for picnic blankets just like theirs were spread out across the hill, and children ran back and forth between them playing.

  “Do you want to go play with them?” her father asked.

  Sabrina swallowed her last bite of sandwich. “Yeah!”

  As she stood up, her mother tugged on the hem of her skirt. “Sabrina, come here for a second!”

  Her mother was speaking to a friend of hers who’d come here with her own family. The two had been talking nearly since they got here.

  “Hi…,” Sabrina said as she walked up to the woman. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen this woman with her mother but she’d never spoken to her before.

  The woman sipped on a glass of wine and beamed at Sabrina. “Hey there Sabrina, it’s nice to finally meet you! Your mother just can’t stop talking about you every time I see her! But I can see why! You’re so cute!”

  “Ha ha, thanks…” Sabrina said shyly.

  “Go on, Sabrina,” her mom said, resting a hand on her back. “Show her your powers! Ooh, why don’t you lift up her wine glass?”

  Sabrina nodded and held out her hand. The woman raised a curious brow, but several seconds later, the wine glass levitated out of her hand.

  “Oh my goodness! So it’s really true!”

  Sabrina grinned, pulling the wine glass even closer to herself to prove there were no tricks involved.

  Suddenly, a flash of pain lanced through Sabrina’s head and she clutched her head. “Ah!” Just as soon as the pain had come it was gone, and Sabrina massaged her temples.

  “Oh no, are you alright, Sabrina?” The woman wore a look of guilt on her face and Sabrina was about to tell her she was fine.

  “Sabrina!”

  Though her head was throbbing, Sabrina looked over at her mother, who wore a ghastly expression on her face. She flicked her eyes over at her friend, and Sabrina followed her.

  Sabrina gasped.

  The wine had spilled all over the woman’s clothes, and the now empty glass lay on the grass.

  “I-I’m so sorry!” Sabrina stammered.

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. It’s my fault, I shouldn’t have asked—“

  “God, this is embarrassing,” Sabrina’s mother muttered. “I don’t know what that was, she must not be feeling well. Dear! Come help us clean this up!”

  Though she wanted to, though she could feel the lump in her throat and the heat in her eyes, Sabrina did not cry. That would only make things worse. Instead, she helped her father, moving mechanically as they helped soak up the spilled wine. They left shortly after. Her father carried her home and she stared listlessly at the sidewalk behind them as they walked.

  “This is exactly why I’m always telling you to practice,” her mother said once they were home. “You probably ruined that dress of hers. And you made an absolute embarrassment of me.”

  “C’mon, enough, she—“ her father started.

  Her mother threw up a hand and knelt down, meeting Sabrina’s shame-filled eyes. “Practice. The rest of the day. Okay? We don’t want anything bad to happen, right?”

  Sabrina nodded glumly. She’d been looking forward to watching her favorite pokémon battling show when they got back, but that was clearly off the menu now. Her powers were something her parents and even the doctors didn’t fully understand, but obviously, and especially in the hands of a kid, they could be dangerous. Her mother was always looking out for her, making sure she didn’t accidentally hurt anyone.

  The consequences of her blunder ended up lasting far longer than Sabrina expected, however. In the following days and weeks, her mother kept her glued to a strict training regiment. She spent hours every day practicing her levitations and telekinesis.

  But even after months had passed, Sabrina couldn’t feel a clear increase in her ability or control, and she could tell it was beginning to bother her mother. Nowadays, her mother seemed irritable all the time, and would snap at Sabrina or her father over little things. They didn’t go on family outings as much anymore, and when they did, Sabrina noticed her mother wasn’t as eager to show off her daughter anymore.

  In between her training sessions, when her mother was busy with something else, Sabrina would go outside onto the balcony. It was tiny, scarcely large enough to fit several potted plants and a stool for her to sit on, but it was a welcome respite from the suffocating atmosphere inside. She’d sit there and let her mind empty. Far above, the sun warmed her with its light, and some days, Sabrina found herself staring at it longingly.

  It wasn’t until her ninth birthday that Sabrina realized she was causing the mounting discord in their family’s household. As her parents argued, she stayed in the bathroom, hands clamped over her ears, though she could still hear them.

  “I watch her all day!” her mother yelled. “Do you know what it’s like? To have a ticking time bomb in the house—?”

  “Don’t call her—!”

  “Don’t call her, what?! You’re at work all day, blissfully unaware! How could you understand? I’m the one who actually cares enough to try and improve her powers! Meanwhile, you just treat her like she’s some normal girl!”

  “She is a normal girl! The only reason you care about her gift is to impress your friends!”

  A slap rang out through the dining room.

  “How dare you!”

  It was around then that Sabrina made her way through the forest of balloons around the dining room and slipped outside onto the balcony, shutting the sliding door behind her.

  She felt like the biggest fool in the world in her princess dress and party hat right now. Inside, her parents were arguing about adult things. Important things. Meanwhile, all she was thinking about was cake and presents.

  As much as she tried to tamp down her feelings, tears slid down her cheeks all the same. That was fine, right? Her parents were in such a big argument on her birthday. Surely it was okay to cry in a situation like this. Normally when she cried, her mother would freeze up like a statue and wait until she calmed down, so she’d learned to cry as little as possible. But today, they wouldn’t stop falling.

  Oh, wait.

  Her mother had said something earlier. She’d called Sabrina a ‘ticking time bomb.’ Sabrina didn’t know what that was, but it obviously wasn’t good. Had her mother really been afraid to be around her this whole time? Maybe that was why she pushed Sabrina so hard to get better at using her powers. She wasn’t just trying to keep others safe. She was trying to keep her family safe too.

  But…didn’t she know? Sabrina would never hurt her. She knew that, right?

  It also occurred to her now that none of her friends had been invited to her party this year. They’d been invited in the past, but this year, her parents had arranged a smaller party with just the three of them, at home. Surely that wasn’t still because of the picnic incident, right? Her parents just wanted a smaller party this year was all…

  When Sabrina’s thoughts faded, reality seeped back in, and she could hear her mother’s screaming from behind the door. She clamped her hands over her ears again and searched wildly for something to occupy her mind. The barren street below and the houses across the street did nothing for her, so her eyes drifted skyward, to the sun, bright as always, indifferent to the turmoil unfolding behind her.

  So far away… Must be nice…

  Sabrina didn’t know what time it was when the door finally slid open and her father coaxed her back inside. He was saying things to her, apologizing and some other stuff, but Sabrina wasn’t really paying attention. He offered her cake, but she wasn’t hungry. And her mother seemed to be gone.

  She was tired for some reason. Very, very tired, so she said good night to her father and went to bed. And he let her go.

  Her mother was back the next morning like nothing had happened. She woke Sabrina up as normal, and they ate breakfast as normal too, even if it was a bit quieter. Her mother also drank a beer with her breakfast. When they were done, Sabrina jumped right into her training without being asked. Surely, that would please her.

  Six months later, some men came to their house. They wrinkled their noses when they walked in, but both of her parents were home, and they were dressed nicer than usual.

  “Is this her?” one of them asked, nodding at Sabrina.

  “Yes,” her father said. “Sabrina, these nice men are going to be helping us out, okay?”

  She hadn’t heard about this. She didn’t know her dad wasn’t going into work today until she saw him downstairs this morning. He’d been staying home more, ever since her birthday, but she was pretty sure today was a work day. And even still, she should have known something was up when her mother actually spoke amicably with her father over breakfast. That never happened. Not after her birthday. She seemed to be in a very good mood today.

  “Helping out…? With what…?” Sabrina asked.

  Her dad knelt down and grasped her hands. “These men work for the Pokémon League. You like the Pokémon League, right?”

  “Why did they come to our house?” Ordinarily, Sabrina would’ve been excited to meet real pokémon trainers, especially workers from the Pokémon League, but she could muster no excitement today. Things were too off.

  “Your mom and dad asked us to help you with your training, Sabrina,” one of them said. “It sounds like there’s something pretty special about you.”

  Sabrina nodded, though she was still unsure what would happen to her.

  “Go and play now, Sabrina,” her father said. “Mom and dad have some important things to talk about with these men, okay?”

  “I want to stay here.”

  Sabrina surprised even herself. Ordinarily, she tried to be as docile as possible. She’d grown to enjoy her own company, not wanting to bother her parents whenever possible. But… This seemed different. She could just tell. Things were about to change.

  “Sit down and keep quiet, then,” her mother said.

  She was being oddly accommodating too.

  Oh, well. Sabrina did as she was bid and sat herself down in her own tiny chair, while her parents and the men sat at the dinner table.

  But despite what she said, Sabrina understood next to nothing about what they said. She was nine, after all. They spoke too quickly for her to keep up with the conversation, and it sounded like this wasn’t their first time talking. All of them seemed to be on the same page, except for maybe her father, who kept interrupting, and getting shut down by her mother. But that was pretty normal.

  The topic of conversation was Sabrina, of course, and her powers. If Sabrina had to guess, these men would be helping her develop her powers, since she wasn’t improving much at home on her own. She wasn’t looking forward to that. Despite her dad calling them “nice men,” they did not seem to like her parents at all. Disdain and scorn laced their every word.

  Eventually they mentioned the “gym,” and Sabrina started paying closer attention. Like everyone else her age, she’d wanted to become a trainer when she turned ten. As of late, the possibility of that happening seemed distant, but hearing it mentioned still excited her. If she was to be training at the local gym, then maybe she would still become a trainer in a year.

  “How about we take custody of her?” one of the men said. “What do you think of that?”

  “Oh, are you serious? Absolutely!” her mother said gleefully.

  “What? Wait…” her father said.

  Custody…?

  The other man rapped his partner’s shoulder. “What are you saying? We can’t just—“

  “It makes me sick!” the first man spat, standing up. “How can you raise her in a house like this? It’s a damn pigsty in here! And you!” He jabbed his finger at Sabrina’s mother. “You—!”

  “Stop it!” Sabrina cried, leaping up from her chair. “Leave them alone!” This man wasn’t nice at all! Why was he suddenly yelling at her mom?

  “Go on, take her. I said we’re fine with it,” her mother said calmly.

  “We are not fine with it—“

  “How can you say that? Right in front of her?!” the man roared. “You’re a failure as a parent, you know that? That’s your daughter!”

  “That is not my daughter,” her mother hissed, flicking dust off her nail. “That is a monster!”

  Huh?

  “Calm down, man!”

  Sabrina ran to the table and put herself in between her mother and the men. “Stop being mean to her!” she wailed.

  The angry man recoiled a bit as his partner pulled him back, disgust evident in his eyes as he stared down at Sabrina. “Now, Sabrina. You don’t have to live here anymore with her,” he said gently. “We can take you to the pokémon gym.”

  “Wait just a second!” her father pleaded.

  “Don’t talk to her like that, you’ll make her think she’s like us,” her mother scolded in the same tone she used to scold Sabrina.

  She’s not talking about me, right?

  Sabrina’s brows furrowed and she shoved the man’s outstretched hand away. “Leave us alone!” she screamed.

  Her mother giggled behind her.

  “This is sickening. It’s heartbreaking,” the man said, shaking his head. He turned to her father. “Please. Let us take her with us.”

  Sabrina looked over at her dad. Her heart thundered in her chest and she could feel tears welling up in her eyes.

  “No,” he said quietly.

  “What was that?” the man asked.

  “No,” he said louder. “I…I’ll take Sabrina. Just me. I’ll raise her properly, I promise…”

  “You?” her mother sneered. “Hell no! Give her to the gym!”

  Sabrina didn’t understand. Tears dripped down her face. Her parents were about to fight again, this time, in front of strangers. They were normally careful to only have their fights at home, but now…

  Shame welled up from Sabrina’s core, consuming her stomach like acid. Her face twisted as hot emotions bit at her like starving dogs. Her father always went along with what her mother said, in the end, no matter how bad their fights got. But now, today, for some reason, he’d decided to stand up to her?

  Sabrina didn’t even know what she wanted anymore. Should she go with the men like her mother wanted her to? The men who were here to rip apart her family? Or go with her father and make everyone mad?

  She clenched her fist and glared at the ground. “Just go away! Or else!” Green light began to leak from her eyes.

  She didn’t even know who she was talking to at this point. It could’ve even been herself.

  Everyone in the room looked at her as a silence actually prevailed over them.

  “Aha!” her mother eventually laughed. “Did you hear that? She’s a freak! Did you hear what she said?”

  Sabrina’s stomach turned weightless as she turned around. As much as she’d tried to ignore it before, there was no ignoring this. Her mother’s finger was pointed straight at her, a jilted grin on her face.

  “You drunken monster,” the man growled.

  “Don’t call me drunk, I’m not.” Her mother’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll do what I should have done years ago.” She paced closer to Sabrina and rested her hand on her head, stroking her hair.

  Sabrina shivered beneath her grasp. Her cheeks were already wet with tears, but she could not find any more for this situation. She looked up at her mother in fear.

  Then, her head suddenly jerked to the side and her body fell out from under her. Her face smashed into the ground, and Sabrina turned dizzy.

  “What the hell are you doing?!”

  As her head spun, half of her face numb, Sabrina heard her mother cry out in pain. It was a throaty, revolting sound. Something Sabrina had never heard before.

  Something warm and sticky dripped down Sabrina’s forehead. How had her tears gotten up there?

  Maybe it was because she’d hit her head, but for what felt like the first time in a long time, as she glanced around at the place she called home, she felt as if she was truly seeing it for the first time. In her periphery, she saw the men attacking her mom, who was on the floor like her. She could hear her father somewhere near her but she couldn’t make out anything he was saying.

  Trash bags lay in the corner of the dining room. Black mold lined the cracks and edges of the room. The floor, which her nose was now pressed against, stank like beer and dirt.

  Surely her friends’ houses didn’t look like this. And even if they did, what was happening now inside of it would certainly never happen in theirs.

  It was her fault, Sabrina realized. Everything was her fault. Her mom had tried her best. Her dad had tried his best. Even these men were just doing their job.

  But Sabrina…she probably could’ve trained harder. She could’ve been more pleasant. She could’ve been a better daughter.

  If only she’d been stronger.

  If only she’d been normal.

  If only she’d been stronger.

  If only she’d been normal.

  If only she’d been stronger.

  If only she’d been normal.

  If only she’d been stronger.

  If only she’d been normal.

  Sabrina didn’t remember what happened next. The next thing she knew, she was in some vehicle. Then she was at the gym. Once she was there, she beat everyone inside. She became the gym leader. She didn’t see her mom again. She didn’t see her dad again. She didn’t see those men again, and she never saw her house again. Her friends never came to see her. And she did not return to school.

  Everyday was a hazy blur. Some days she had those thoughts again, about wanting to be stronger, or wanting to be normal. But it felt more like she was watching two other girls through a mental fog, rather than those thoughts actually belonging to her.

  Eventually a boy came to her gym. For the first time since that day, she laughed. And she started to remember things again. She no longer saw those two girls. Yes… She had a pokémon called Abra…or actually, it had evolved into a Kadabra during the battle. And now she had a pokémon called Haunter too.

  Shortly after that battle, she received a gift from the International Police, one she couldn’t refuse. Two specialized limiters designed to suppress and manage her powers. The moment she put them on, a weight seemed to vanish off of her mind, one she hadn’t even realized was there. Emotion came to her easier. Joy when her pokémon did something cute, anger when some snot-nosed trainer actually managed to defeat her, or sadness during those times she recalled what once was. The fact that those emotions were relayed clearly through the movements of her limiters irritated Sabrina to no end, so despite her improving condition, she made no effort to make friends or rejoin society at large.

  Not like she knew how, anyway.

  Over the next few years, as time created distance between her and the incident, Sabrina came to understand what had happened.

  Her mother was the problem. She’d loved Sabrina for her powers, and the moment she realized Sabrina would be more trouble than she was worth, she stopped, instead indulging in liquor and parties and other such frivolities after shedding her duties as mother and wife.

  Her father wasn’t strong enough to stop her mother. He’d always been a passive man, but as her mother took more and more control, he shrunk from his role as her equal.

  And those League men had come to offer her parents an opportunity to place Sabrina in a specialized training program. But after seeing the state of abuse she was in, one of them lost his temper and tried to take custody of her by force.

  In the end, it was her father who got what he wanted. Before her mind had healed, she’d been living in the gym. But now, she lived in a different, much smaller apartment with him. Guilt hung over him like a cloud at all times and there were few words between them, but Sabrina was determined to repay him for standing up to her mother on that day. At the very least, she wanted to grant his wish. That, and it was easier to live with him than live by herself. If she were by herself…

  Then, one day…

  “Hello, Sabrina! I’m Champion Cynthia from Sinnoh. Do you have a few minutes to talk?”

  Hisui Region, about 2,500 years before the present

  Ash stared at Sabrina, whose gaze was cast aside. His heart felt like a stone in his chest. He’d known she’d had a tough childhood, but in his ignorance, he’d just assumed she’d been physically abused or subjected to discrimination because of her powers. He hadn’t expected a disintegration of her family so slow and gradual that the young Sabrina hadn’t even realized it was happening, or the cruel and poisonous ruination of her psyche by her mother, all for the sake of her own vanity.

  “I’m…sorry,” he eventually mumbled.

  Sabrina looked up at him, her crystalline eyes glittering from the sun’s reflection in the water. “You don’t have to apologize, it’s not your fault. Actually…” She tugged on her hair and glanced away again. “It was you who saved me… If you hadn’t come to my gym that day…I don’t know where I’d be right now.”

  Ash scratched the back of his head, his face heating up. “I wasn’t trying to do all that. It was just a coincidence. It’s embarrassing to admit this, but I didn’t even recognize you when I saw you at Paragon Island again two years ago.”

  Sabrina’s brows furrowed for a second, then her mouth tilted into a thin smile. “I didn’t remember you either. Even though you saved me.”

  “C’mon…” Ash protested. He grinned. “Maybe we’re just not very memorable people.”

  “You are.”

  “Nah, everyone remembers me for the wrong reasons. Like I’m an idiot, or I eat a lot, and stuff.”

  Sabrina giggled. “I mean…”

  “See?!”

  Sabrina tried to stifle her laugh with her hand, but it leaked out anyway, and Ash smiled, glad she wasn’t letting the story about her past dampen her mood.

  “You were the World Champion. Everyone knows you now.”

  “Nah, not really. People have a short memory when it comes to that kind of stuff. Especially when I wasn’t even World Champion for a day.”

  Sabrina turned to look at him and raised a brow. “I’m sure people will remember you for a long time once you become a Pokémon Master.”

  Ash’s face reddened. “I mean, that’s not the point, but I guess it’d be cool.” Then he frowned. “What about you? Do you have any ridiculous dreams from your childhood you’re trying to keep alive?”

  Despite everything that’d happened to her, Ash wanted to believe there was something Sabrina had desired as a child. A dream, maybe like his. Or else, why would she have bothered joining the Paragon Organization and risking her life as she did?

  “I…” Sabrina started.

  “It’s fine if you don’t, I was just wondering,” Ash quickly said.

  “No, it’s…” Sabrina blushed and turned away. “I do… It’s something ridiculous from my childhood, like you said. It’s not something I’d ever come up with today…never… But for some reason I haven’t forgotten it, even after all this time.”

  “That must mean it’s important to you.”

  Sabrina shifted in the water, as if considering whether or not to speak her dream aloud. But eventually, she raised a hand and pointed. Ash followed her finger, squinting.

  “The sun,” Sabrina said. “One day, I’d like to touch the sun.”

  The sun was nearing the horizon, a pit of pure light against the ethereal winter sky. Streams of ghostly refractions stretched out from its blazing surface, unimpeded by the mountains to the west.

  “The sun…” Ash murmured. “Why?”

  “I don’t know!” Sabrina wailed, covering her face with her hands. “It was just something I thought of when I was a kid! I know most people forget about stuff like that when they grow up but…maybe because I’m a psychic…or because I know I’m different…I still have this feeling like I’ll actually be able to do it one day.”

  “Is that why you look at the sun every morning?”

  “No,” Sabrina said, peeking out between her fingers. “I actually do that to strengthen my eyes. But…I guess it’ll be helpful if I ever manage to get up there…”

  “We’ve already crossed time and space. Touching the sun should be easy after that!”

  “I was thinking the same thing,” Sabrina smiled back. “But…I still have to figure out how. Like, how to get all the way up there. And how to not burn to death. And how to breathe in space…and stuff.” She looked at Ash, the plea for him not to see her as crazy obvious in her eyes.

  “Well, let me know if there’s anything I can help with!” he grinned.

  Sabrina blushed and nodded awkwardly, though she appeared to be glad she could share her dream with someone, which pleased Ash.

  “So maybe we are a bit more memorable than we give ourselves credit for,” Ash said after a brief spell of silence between them. “At least our dreams are.”

  “We’re lucky we have that,” Sabrina said. “It makes me think of Yura. And Cogita. No one remembered them or their home. Everything about them was completely forgotten.”

  Ash looked up at the sky solemnly. He hadn’t even realized how long they’d been in the hot springs for, but the sun was already touching the horizon, bathing the sky in an abyssal vista of scarlet and violet. “I’m glad we were able to find Yura’s hometown, but what about all the memories that were lost? Even if we defeat Volo, is there a way to get them back?”

  “If Volo stole their memories with the power of the Dark Plate, then my first thought is that they cannot be restored… Darkness destroys… It isn’t known for creation. But it’s impossible to rule out anything when the Plates are concerned.”

  “And even if it was possible, we’d have to somehow convince Volo to do it.”

  “Or, if you were able to claim his Plate, then you could do it.”

  “But that’s impossible. Even killing him would only make his Plate disappear.” Ash frowned. “Though like you said, maybe I shouldn’t say impossible.”

  “That is why we’re here, isn’t it? To obtain the Plates? If you want to unite them all, then you’ll need to get the Dark Plate somehow.” Sabrina offered him an optimistic smile.

  Ash rubbed his temple. “If I somehow got the Dark Plate here in the past, I don’t even want to think about what problems that might cause as far as the timeline is concerned.”

  Sabrina smirked. “You might end up duplicating the Plates!”

  Ash grinned. “That’s only if we’re able to return to the present.”

  “You said we would!” Sabrina pouted, punching the water.

  “We will!”

  As a silence settled between them, Ash’s mind drifted back to the long story he’d just heard. Sabrina had ended it at her meeting with Cynthia, but he still had questions.

  Before, he would’ve kept them to himself. But he wanted to know more.

  “Do you…know where your mother is today?”

  Sabrina took a second to process the question, then blushed and shook her head. “I haven’t seen her since…that day.”

  “And what exactly happened that day? I mean, with you?”

  Sabrina did not meet Ash’s gaze, but beneath the water, her gauntlet was not spinning quickly, so she seemed to still be calm.

  “I found out later from my dad. I kept asking him and asking him and he didn’t want to tell me. But eventually, he told me. Apparently, I knocked everyone out. My parents and the two League men woke up before me. That was when my mother left and the men took me with them.”

  Ash nodded slowly. From her story, it was clear her father was inundated with guilt, despite how Sabrina had tried to downplay his negligence and his role in her abuse. He seemed to recognize he was at fault and wary about reconnecting with Sabrina because of it. But despite it all, she still made an effort at reconciliation.

  It was Sabrina who’d sought him out after the dust settled. It was she who insisted on living with him. And she, unlike him, who was trying to rebuild her family with him, however meager.

  “He probably didn’t want to tell you because he didn’t want to hurt you. He didn’t want you to think badly of yourself.”

  Sabrina nodded. “Yes. I think you’re right. But…I was relieved when he told me.” She took a breath and exhaled shakily. “I was just glad I didn’t hurt anyone.”

  Ash gazed at her. Her face was sodden with thinly veiled fear. His brows tightened, and without thinking, he took a step toward her and rested his hand on her bare shoulder.

  She winced, and her eyes darted up at Ash’s.

  “Sabrina, you have never hurt anyone with your powers. After hearing all that, now I know for certain. Your entire life, you’ve never hurt anyone with that power. Not anyone that didn’t deserve it, anyway. You don’t have to fear yourself because of that.”

  Sabrina was bright red and her breaths came in quick bursts.

  “B-But, t-there w-was Cynthia t-that o-one t-time…”

  “That? That was probably like a tickle to her.”

  Sabrina scowled and squeezed the hand on her shoulder, and now it was Ash’s turn to blush. When Sabrina noticed, she quickly pulled her hand back, and Ash withdrew his.

  It was then that he noticed her gauntlet spinning ferociously underwater.

  “Why do you keep asking about me?” Sabrina asked, her gaze boring into Ash.

  Ash’s heart turned in his chest and he forced himself not to break her gaze. “W-What do you mean?”

  “My powers… My past… My dream.” Sabrina wasn’t letting him off easy.

  A million thoughts raced through Ash’s head at what he should say. How about the truth? “I mean… I just feel like I barely know anything about you even though we’ve been friends for a couple years now. I-I didn’t mean to be so intrusive.”

  Sabrina shook her head. “No… I’m glad you asked about it… I’m glad I was able to say it all out loud…”

  Ash swallowed, and his throat dried up in an instant upon deciding what he’d say next.

  “When we get back to the present…do you want to go on a date with me?”

  The surface of the water broke as Sabrina’s gauntlet suddenly spazzed out. Ash’s heart thundered, but he kept his eyes on Sabrina, anxiety creeping through his veins now that the question had been asked.

  “Huh?” she breathed, in utter disbelief.

  Ash’s face was beet-red and he scratched his head nervously. “You know…? Like dinner, or something? Just us two.”

  Sabrina’s jaw was agape and she took each breath at a robotic rhythm. “Why would you ask me that?” she said like she was interrogating him. Her normally white skin was red down to her shoulders and her widened eyes twitched.

  “Y-You know…”

  “It’s like you said. After all this time, we barely even know each other.”

  Ash tilted his head to the side and met her gaze again. “I’d…like to change that.”

  Sabrina glanced away, genuine confusion on her face as she tried to process what she was hearing. “I…I… But why…?”

  Ash put his hands up. “Sorry if that came out of nowhere! You can say no if you want! We can pretend this never happened!”

  Sabrina’s eyes darted on and off Ash, seemingly only milliseconds between each movement. As her gauntlet continued to roar beneath the water, she suddenly punched it with her other hand, glaring in frustration. Of course, that did not stop or slow its movements in the slightest, and she glanced back at Ash.

  Despite how tightly her lips were clamped together, a smile of ecstasy wormed its way onto her face. “O-Okay. Let’s do it.”

  Ash grinned, unable to help himself, and he breathed a sigh of relief and victory. “G-Great! Uh…thanks,” he said, though he quickly shook his head in embarrassment. “Sorry…this is my first time doing…something like this. I don’t really know what to say…”

  Sabrina smirked and took a step closer, leaving next to no room between them. “Something like this? What does that mean?”

  Ash grunted in surprise and recoiled. “O-Oh…you know…!” She could be alarmingly bold when she wanted to be!

  Sabrina frowned and crossed her arms. “After everything I just said?”

  Ash cringed internally at his lack of nerve. His courage seemed to have been fully expended on asking the question. “I mean…”

  “I haven’t even told Anabel everything I just told you, you know.”

  Damn. That was bad.

  Or, wait. What does that mean then?

  Ash’s eyes flicked back at Sabrina and he frowned inquisitively. Sabrina caught his meaning in a second, and suddenly, her boldness seemed to melt away, and she slipped away from him, blushing fiercely. Ash smiled, then Sabrina smiled, then they both started laughing.

  “We’re both kind of bad at this!” Ash said, savoring the sound of Sabrina’s laugh.

  “I have more reason to be than you.”

  Not fair! “You got me there. I’m an open book. What you see is what you get. No secrets here.” Ash frowned. “Wait, I just realized you never answered the original question.”

  Sabrina frowned and cocked her head to the side, questioning.

  “You said you don’t know where your powers came from, but then you said you got super lucky when you were nine years old.” He blushed. “You weren’t talking about meeting me, right?”

  Sabrina raised a finger to her lip and nodded. “Oh, right. I did say that.” She looked Ash dead in the eyes.

  “I have a Mew.”

  Next — Chapter 79 : The Four Clans of Hisui

  Apologies for the delay but this is a longer chapter and kind of important.