"So you're saying Gardevoir kidnapped Elias and wouldn't even let you follow?"
Lance asked uncertainly.
After scarfing down a full al, Gengar had launched into an animated pantomi session, finally managing to get his point across.
It nodded vigorously, its face full of righteous indignation, letting out two disgruntled cries.
It had misjudged that Gardevoir big sister!
Getting rid of that dumb cat w was one thing, but how could she also cast out the hardworking, harmless purple blob like him?!
Even though Lance had more or less pieced together what Gengar ant, he still felt... unconvinced.
Pokémon kidnapping their own Trainer, then driving away their teammates? That wasn't just rare—it was basically unheard of.
Besides… if he rembered correctly…
Hadn't Elias ssaged him just ten minutes ago bragging about the breakfast Gardevoir made for him?
If she was as terrifying as Gengar made her out to be, would Elias really be in the mood to send food pics?
Could this be a misunderstanding?
With that thought, Lance waved Gengar over. As the ghost-type gave him a puzzled look, Lance pulled up Elias's recent ssage.
The mont Gengar saw it, the once-lively purple blob dropped to its knees like it had been struck by lightning, looking utterly devastated.
Seeing how deeply Gengar was affected, Lance chuckled awkwardly and quickly helped him back up.
"Maybe it is just a misunderstanding?"
"Let's go check it out, talk it through in person if there's a problem."
After a bit of coaxing, Gengar finally picked itself back up, determination rekindled.
There's no way Elias would fall so hard for Gardevoir that he'd forget about ...
There has to be a misunderstanding!
Clenching his fists, Gengar fired himself up with renewed belief.
Seeing the purple blob full of fire again, Lance let out a quiet sigh of relief.
That said, while he had promised to head to Saffron City right away with Gengar to et up with Sabrina—
He couldn't just drop everything at the League.
The paperwork he could catch up on later, but the bigger problem was...
Today, he was scheduled to receive a very important visitor from Hoenn.
Lance still didn't know their na—only that this person had been making waves on the front lines of the battle against organized cri.
Their group had even tead up with the League several tis, dealing heavy blows to major criminal syndicates in Hoenn and Sinnoh.
It was precisely because of those achievents that the Kanto League had invited them here, hoping they'd aid in suppressing both the Masked Legion and Team Rocket.
Trying to rearrange that sort of official visit at the last minute? Not a good look.
The guest was probably already on the plane by now.
"Gengar, how about this—we pick up the visitor first, then head to Saffron together."
Lance offered the idea after a mont's thought.
Gengar looked thoughtful too, and after asking for an estimate of the delay, it gave a nod of agreent.
Based on that photo earlier, Gardevoir did seem to be treating Elias pretty well. A few extra hours wouldn't kill them.
With that in mind, Gengar puffed up its cheeks, its coloring darkening just slightly.
---
After breakfast, Gardevoir gave Blue a few instructions for watching the house, then set off with Elias toward the high-speed rail station as planned.
Since they were short on ti, there was no chance to deal with w—so Gardevoir had no choice but to let the dumb cat tag along.
"w!"
After yet another psychic toss sent w flying into the distance, Gardevoir gritted her teeth, suppressed anger flickering in her eyes.
From the mont they'd left the house, w had been trying every possible way to wedge herself between her and Elias—she just wouldn't quit!
And sure enough, the cat would probably float back in just a minute, lying in wait for another opening.
"Gaarrr..."
Gardevoir turned to Elias with a pitiful expression.
He could only let out a helpless chuckle.
Sure, Gardevoir was understandably frustrated, but w wasn't exactly sothing he could control either.
Where she wanted to float was, unfortunately, her own business.
When her attempts at acting cute failed, Gardevoir sighed softly and lowered her head in resignation.
Then, as if trying to secure her position, she clung more tightly to Elias's arm—no way was she giving w another chance to wedge herself in.
In contrast, Milotic—who was still quietly playing with that little black flute—seed much more well-behaved.
Hooooo—
The soft notes rang out again, bringing with them a wave of ntal calm.
Elias squinted slightly, but didn't stop her.
Since the last ti he played the flute yielded no response from Tias, he had tried a few more tis afterward. The results had been the sa.
He didn't know why—but at least it confird that the flute currently had no real function.
Milotic, however, had taken an interest in it, so he simply let her keep playing.
Who knows? Maybe one of these tis, the dragon will actually show up.
Once again, the song ended—nothing happened.
Milotic's pretty face darkened slightly, frustration growing.
Is that jet-plane dragon deaf or sothing?
She's been blowing into this thing until her lips are dry, and Latias hasn't even poked her head out once.
No wonder soone else took her place as "Mom."
With a huff, Milotic put the flute away, finally giving up.
Once they boarded the train, the trip turned dull.
Aside from watching a few Tauros bare their teeth at each other along the way, there wasn't much else to see.
Ti passed quickly, and by sunset, the train arrived at Saffron City as scheduled.
Elias stared at the city he hadn't seen in years, a mix of emotions stirring in his chest.
Outside of Pallet Town, Saffron had been the first real city he'd explored in the Pokémon world.
Unlike the peaceful, slow-paced Pallet, Saffron pulsed with neon lights and a modern aesthetic—a blend of Pokémon culture and futuristic design.
"owth—long ti no see."
Passing by a familiar shop, Elias spotted a owth he used to play with during his ti in the simulation and called out instinctively.
"ow?!"
The owth blinked in surprise at the sight of him.
But before it could rub its eyes and get a better look, Elias had already walked off.
Milotic followed behind, quietly observing Elias as he effortlessly navigated the streets.
And a thought slowly surfaced in her mind.
If I'm not mistaken, didn't Elias grow up in Alto Mare in the Hoenn region?
Why does he seem so familiar with this place?
A string of theories ran through her mind.
anwhile, Elias had arrived at the entrance to Saffron Gym.
Compared to a few years ago, the gym's front had clearly been renovated.
It looked far more grand and elegant now—but at the sa ti, colder, less welcoming.
Elias frowned.
He didn't quite care for this sterile style of decoration.
If mory serves... Sabrina didn't like this kind of cold, clinical aesthetic either, did she?
Still wondering, he slowly pushed the doors open.
---
...
Huh. You really stuck it out all the way to the end.
Didn't think you had the patience. Guess I was wrong.
WiseTL's the one who actually made all this co together. I'm just here putting a bow on it… or, well, shoving it in a backpack and calling it a day. Sa thing.
If you had fun, you know what to do:
👉 [patreon/WiseTL]
Heads up—Patreon's 50% off for all tiers during May. So if you were on the fence? Now's the ti.
And if you're the social type, there's a Discord too. Pretty decent spot to hang out—no battles required.
Alright. That's enough standing around. Go on—before you make it weird.
—Leaf
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