I need to find her.

Luce's breaths couldn't come quickly enough. Psyduck was gone— where could she have wandered off to? Underground? Or perhaps, did Saturn take her when he retrieved his Bronzong? There's no reason for him to. She wandered out into the wild in her state?

Why didn't she just stay where she was?

Why didn't he just give Barry her Poke Ball, to begin with?

Why, why, why.

"Luce, just— just calm down a little," Barry holds him by the shoulders. He's also frazzled. Luce knows what must be going through his mind. He must be blaming himself for leaving her behind in this place. "We'll find her soon."

If it was that easy, they'd have found her already.

The entire mansion was in disarray, anyone able was out in the surrounding areas, trying to find the Psyduck. Roark even sent a group of Geodude into the Underground to help him look, but it was impossible to locate which way it went.

"Doozy wouldn't run away from me," Luce insists. "Someone must have taken her."

But there was no reason for Saturn to take her. He'd have taken a Clefairy instead. It didn't make sense. Then, why?

If only Luce didn't suggest this stupid hero plan.

If only.

-

They spend the night in the Pokemon Mansion, but Luce can't relax at all.

Monferno seems to feel the same. Also awake, the chimp Pokemon was by his bedside, fiddling with Luce's palms, squishing it testingly in a way Luce hasn't seen him do since he was a Chimchar. It calms him, in a way. Monferno was stronger now, so it almost felt like a hand massage.

In the corner of the room, Ponyta slumps against Munchlax, with Togepi between them. Luxio and Cleffa slept together, curled lazily into each other. Prinplup was awake, staring sternly at the ground with a similarly crestfallen look as Luce. Buneary was asleep in her own corner, beside Staravia and Turtwig, who were silent.

Psyduck is missing. Psyduck is missing....?

Ah... that's right. There's an event regarding Psyduck at around this point of the game. It even had a subplot in the manga, didn't it? Something about a hypnotic wave that affects Psyducks specifically, because of their unique psychic-headache trait.

If so, then there's only one place a Psyduck can be. He gets up, reaching for his bag.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Dawn is awake, and her voice is low and furious.

Barry is awake too, on the bed further away, and they're both, even in the dim lighting, very pointedly glaring at him.

Luce shakes his hands. He wasn't planning on going! Not immediately.

"Don't lie," Dawn says. "You had an idea, didn't you? You were going to go, whether we like it or not. If it's something reckless, I am putting my foot down on this!"

"Same here," Barry says. "I have limits."

Now that's just being mean at this point.

Luce considers telling them, but thinks better of it, realising that Lucas has no reason to be so sure of the answer. But he couldn't exactly just insist on going despite it all, not when the logical thing to do right now was stay in place and keep searching the general vicinity.

He turns on his Poketch.

"[Let's split up to look for her,]" he suggests.

Like what they did in Jubilife. There's no harm in splitting up, at least for now, right? They could definitely cover more ground. So even if Luce is wrong, they'll still be looking for her.

"Absolutely not," Barry hisses, standing up from his bed and getting on Luce's. Dawn follows, clutching her pillow, scowling at the interaction. "You're being impatient."

"Hypocrite," Luce retorts.

"Hey now, you two," Dawn sighs. "But Luce is right. The most the police can do after long enough is put up some missing posters and hope someone responds. The Gym Leaders will be busy, too. We have to deal with it on our own afterward."

Barry frowns, realizing she's technically right.

"Alright then," he says. "I'm at fault for this, anyways—"

He stops, when Luce and Dawn sneer at him in unison, a synchronous rebuttal of 'no it isn't' that he reluctantly accepts.

"—I'll do all I can," Barry promises. "I'm sorry."

"Wha–" Dawn swallows her words. "It was my fault, too. I was there, I should have had Bonsai look after her, anything..."

Luce shakes his head. There's no point in placing blame anywhere now.

Luce sighs, taking Barry's face in his hand, leaning in just a little closer. He reaches for Dawn too, and she reacts with surprise. But she comes closer and their foreheads touch, a moment of silence together.

Luce doesn't blame them. He really doesn't. But his heart still hurts, so he doesn't know if he truly believes himself.

He just needs to get Doozy back, as soon as he can.

-

Luce manages to relax the next morning, just enough to really smile for the Pokemon before they part ways, for the sake of leaving on a brighter note.

"Braver," he declares Togepi's name to be, and Barry delightedly helps her get used to it. Monferno and Buneary were already giving her a very serious-looking shakedown on the dos and don'ts, or something.

Barry rubs Luxio on the head, nuzzling it around the ears as he enjoys being praised about his evolution. Staravia also gets plenty of love from Dawn, while Cleffa has found itself a new job fighting with Togepi for Luce's attention.

The cute quarrel really cheered Luce up, though. Especially when Monferno and Buneary stood aside, sulking in envy because they knew they had to let the babies monopolise him instead.

Munchlax and Ponyta, on the other hand, look through the carnage that was once Luce's bag. They managed to salvage the things inside, but with the glass shards of the incubator, his spare clothes were partially torn and some bottles of medicine were broken.

Luce finds a rubber ducky in his bag, miraculously unharmed, and sighs. His Psyduck, whatever she's doing now, is probably upset.

Dawn mends Luce's clothes, and Barry distributes their supplies into their bags.

Luxio and Ponyta chase each other around the room. Buneary is boasting about its pretty colour to Cleffa and Togepi, who were watching her in confusion. Monferno, Prinplup, and Turtwig seem to be in a discussion of sorts, while Staravia, Munchlax and Abra dozed off in the corner, uninterested in everything.

"In two weeks," Dawn suggests, when they reaffirm the Town Map. "We part ways here, and in exactly two weeks' time, we meet here."

Lake Valor.

"Seems about right," Barry says. "We'll be in Eastern Sinnoh, so it's going to be notoriously much rougher..." he sighs, "by the time we meet again, you better be much stronger than you are now, got it, you two?"

Luce begins to dread it a little. The long trek of that road is notorious even in the game, especially in regard to trainers, but at the very least, he wasn't going through the marsh like Barry was.

"We can have a Pokemon Battle," Luce suggests.

Now that he thought about it, has he and Barry actually fought before? Rival battles were staples in the game, so it was strange to think that he and Barry had never initiated one, other than the very first time they got their starters.

"Challenge accepted!" he grins. "But I do wonder about you, Dawn," Barry turns to her. "The Grand Underground is pretty tough even on experienced trainers. You sure you want to spend two whole weeks catching everything you can find?"

Dawn puffs up her chest, "of course! I'm Professor Rowan's designated pokemon Collector, after all!" she says, proudly. Then, a cheeky smile. "Don't worry! I'll have Mister Roark and Grandpa Underground checking up on me."

"Well, that assures me, but you're going to be living underground?"

"I'll make a secret base! It's going to be so fun."

"...well, as long as you enjoy yourself."

-

The Manaphy Egg is safe and sound. Mister Backlot shows it to them the next day as it rests in an incubator. It's mystique, half-translucent, pure blue, a red core gleaming like a sacred treasure of the sea.

"We were entrusted to it from the Fiore region," they explain. "They wanted us to hand this to a capable trainer, in hopes of hatching it. Do you think any of you are up to the task?"

Seeing as Luce had just managed to hatch an egg yesterday, it seemed most logical for it to be by his side. But he'd also lost Psyduck, so he wasn't sure if he had the heart to raise a new Pokemon now, much less something as easily influenced by emotions as an egg.

"I can take it," Dawn volunteers. Barry was going to have to traverse through marshlands, so it would be untenable for him. "I'll be down in the Underground, but I'll raise it properly! It'll also help with my Pokedex, so it checks out, right?"

Well, that was certainly true. The Underground was dangerous, but not as dangerous as an uncharted mine like Oreburgh's. If Dawn has a Machamp Guard by her side, the Egg will be the most stealthily protected thing in the region.

Mister Backlot smiles back, Dawn's cheerfulness being contagious.

"Then, I'll leave this to you," Mister Backlot says, handing the mystique blue egg to the girl. "Do take care of it."

Dawn beams. "I'll do my best!"

-

"You can keep it, Luce!" Dawn assures, when Luce feels guilty about taking her scarf. "I was thinking of a colour change, anyways. Next time I go shopping, I'm gettin' a blue one!"

Barry snickers at that.

They part ways the next day, Luce following Fantina back toward Hearthome, Dawn on Roark's watch as they descend the Underground once more, and Barry headed for the marsh down south.

'See ya' didn't quite fit them.

Instead, their foreheads touched, and they simply spent a moment in a silent prayer for each other, their promise to meet again in their chests.

Stay safe, none of them say.

But when they part ways, it's resolved, and none of them look back.

-

Monferno and Buneary chat quietly as they go, the latter on Monferno's head as Monferno carries Togepi as would a plush toy.

Luce barely drops by Hearthome, crossing the gates only to head straight for Route 209. He doesn't meet anyone on the way, since it's too early. He only bids a polite goodbye to Fantina as she sees him off with a worried gaze.

"Don't overdo it, alright? We'll do all we can over here."

Luce nods.

The only thing on his mind is his desire to make sure his Psyduck is where he thinks it is. Because if it isn't... he doesn't want to think of it.

If he hurries, he'll be able to make it to Solaceon by today.

"...I'm just making sure, lad, but you're not thinking of actually getting to Solaceon by today, are you?" Fantina questions, a brow raised.

From the way Luce jumps, she's definitely read him like a book.

"Please, take a proper break," she pleads. "I know you're worried, but stressing about this is only going to wear you down even more."

Easy for you to say.

She seems to know exactly what he was thinking, too, because she puts a hand on his shoulder, cradling his face gently.

"Your Psyduck will feel awful, if it knows you're hurting yourself like this," Fantina says. "Look at those dark circles. You shone on stage, brighter than anyone, but now, you're a shell of what you were before."

Luce looks away, flustered. His fists clench.

"Don't just think of this as an errand, Luce," Fantina says. "This is an opportunity. In the path you chose ahead, there are many things you need to do. Take your time, catch more Pokemon, and really evaluate what you want to do, and what you need to do it."

Evaluate what I want to do?

"If you want to keep playing the hero in situations like these, then by all means, go for it!" Fantina says, a smile growing on her face.

Luce is stunned. All the Gym Leaders had spent all their time telling them not to do just that, and yet...

"You're a smart child with a reckless streak," Fantina says. "And that's perfectly fine! But if you want to live up to the hero in your ideals, you've got to become someone that can handle anything that comes your way, so we wouldn't be so worried about you."

(If you want to act like a hero, prove yourself someone up to the task, first.)

...so, get stronger.

Luce nods, a little more resolved this time.

-

Togepi is a very obedient child. She takes in everything with silent contemplation. Luce spends a greater half of the day getting to know it as Monferno helps with teaching it the know-hows of communication.

"Training!" Luce cheerfully suggests.

"Training!" Monferno and Buneary cheers back.

They all turn to Togepi, who stares back in confusion. Then, raising his stout little arms, he makes a sort of strained cheer, trying to imitate the hurray with some effort.

Luce felt instantly healed.

Unfortunately, they say that Pokemon you've hatched tend to take after you.

And Luce is getting a first-hand experience of Barry's grief regarding Luce now, because Togepi is impulsive, and reckless.

Luce would look away for a second and come back to find Togepi headbutting a tree. A colony of Wurmple falls out in an agitated heap, and Togepi stoically points. Look, I found enemies to fight.

Luce would frantically, in a panic, completely flustered, try to shout three times before remembering to whistle instead. Monferno and Buneary are already desperately rushing over, a flaming fist and furious ear rushing forward to quickly deal with the Bug Pokemon colony before they retaliate against the baby.

Togepi would nonchalantly sit in the dead middle of that chaos, enjoying the view until Monferno and Buneary manage to defeat everything.

Then, hard of breath, Monferno and Buneary would scold Togepi for needlessly putting himself in danger, and Togepi would just look confused at why he was getting chewed out.

Then Luce would turn his attention to something else for a brief second, only to realize Togepi has wandered off and gone to pester a nearby nest of sleeping Houndour. And if you ever wonder why you shouldn't do that, it's because—

—Monferno shrieks, rushing forward to snatch Togepi away before hellfire consumes him.

The cycle repeats.

On the bright side, they were, in fact, getting a decent amount of training done with that. And it was, all things considered, objectively hilarious, so Luce found himself having fun despite everything.

-

Monferno and Buneary were cranky at this point, and by popular demand, Luce gives Togepi the Soothe Bell. The Pokemon probably didn't know about its friendship-raising properties, they just wanted to bell the menace like a cat.

They traverse Route 209, battling trainers along the way. They pass by a camp and accept an offered meal of stew for lunch, and then, they move on.

Onto more important things. At this pace, Monferno's next evolution might not be too far away. Buneary's also quite a force to be reckoned with. The problem now was strength on a more general level.

If this were a game...

[Better coverage,] he writes down on his Journal, trying to sort his thoughts in order. There are seventeen... no, eighteen. Fairy included, and Togepi used Sweet Kiss back in the mansion.

...he's in a bit of trouble. He knows Fairy is strong against fighting and dragon, and weak to steel and poison, but he's not sure about resistances and neutrals. Ghosts, Darks, and Psychics have always stumped him, too.

Well, let's put that aside for now.

The staple of every Pokemon Team is the Grass-Fire-Water core.

Luce has Monferno, and Psyduck, once he gets her back. He'll need a grass or electric type from here. Then after that, something for the sky, something for the earth, and the last spot should be either a psychic, dark, or ghost type with coverage across that board.

Ugh, this is hurting his head.

He wonders how Gym Leaders manage to stick to one Pokemon type at all times. The gap in his coverage unnerves him.

He looks toward the grasslands of Route 209, where Starly, Bibarel, and Roselia wander about. He could catch a Roselia, but he's not so sure if it'll work out, balance-wise. Rather than catching another Special Attacker, what his team needs is something defensive.

Monferno tugs on his sleeve for attention, and Luce lifts his head to see Togepi in the center of a group of curious Ralts, all who were surrounding him curiously, observing the strange baby Pokemon like a council determining its fate.

Monferno looked exhausted. Buneary put herself in between them, screeching some sort of 'back off!' at them all, only to get curious looks in return, and a placating pat on the head.

Yeah. Yeah, he better go stop that.

Luce picks up Togepi and Buneary, chuckling when the Ralts scatter at the sight of him. Buneary screeches angrily, 'don't come back!' maybe.

Ralts, huh... if I didn't already have Psychic, Fighting and Fairy coverage, it might have some worth catching.

In fact, didn't Barry have a Dawn Stone on hand? Luce sinks back into thought. He checks his bag to find the Dawn Stone in his bag instead.

He frowns. They must've accidentally swapped it around at some point, since their stuff gets mixed up all the time while travelling together. That means Barry has the Shiny Stone at the moment... well, he doesn't need it yet, so it doesn't matter.

Barry had Prinplup, Staravia, Munchlax, and Ponyta. A Ralts would be perfect to balance his team out, whether it evolves into Gardevoir or Gallade.

Well, he might as well catch it— Luce pauses, when his Pokedex chimes. You're kidding me, right? That's the sound for the Shiny data indicator. You're not telling me my luck's this good? Cece's never caught a single shiny Pokemon in her life, and somehow, Luce has found three, including the Budew back in Eterna Forest that he didn't catch.

He's almost too pleased about this.

A confused blue ralts stares up at him, approaching him in curiosity.

"[Ralts, the Feeling Pokemon. It uses the horns on its head to sense human emotions. It is said to appear in front of cheerful people,]" the Pokedex reads.

The Ralts tilts its head aside at the noise. and Monferno giggles, explaining what it was. The Ralts lets out an understanding hum. Buneary growls at it threateningly, and Ralts gives it another confused hum.

Luce melts. Yep, it's cheered me up indeed.

He takes out a Poke Ball. Since it likes cheerful people, it would definitely love Barry, and Barry would definitely love it, too.

-

"[Mach Punch]," Luce makes the Pokedex read out, and Monferno lunges forward, taking the Roselia out swiftly. "[Mach Punch]."

Monferno does the same move again, and again.

He pauses slightly to catch his breath, and Luce orders him to do it again.

That move isn't in this record, Luce realizes. Power-up Punch isn't on record. And yet, Monferno's punches get stronger each turn, and by his sixth, he manages to take out a Roselia in one hit, along with a tree as collateral damage. He had to apologize to the Pokemon in the area after that.

It's definitely an existing move, but it's not classified yet. And when he checks Togepi's Pokedex record, it still says 'normal' type, and Sweet Kiss isn't part of its recorded arsenal, even though he's undeniably used it.

The Pokedex isn't perfect.

In fact, Fairy Types still aren't acknowledged to exist yet. If he could find a Clefairy to test his theory... nevermind, he'll save that for some other time.

Monferno comes back to Luce's side, slumping tiredly at Luce's thigh, and Luce smiles, patting him on the head in praise.

The Pokedex won't help him name the move, but that's fine.

His fighting style has long muddled the barriers of traditional gameplay, anyways.

-

He camps out with the local trainers, setting up a tent and a sleeping bag for the first time in quite a while. It's lonely, being on his own again after so long with Barry, but he staves off the emptiness by joining the group at the campfire, sharing their journeys.

There are Picnickers and Campers, mostly, talking about Fantina's latest display of power in the contests. Apparently, there's a rumoured up-and-coming Contest Star in the Tough category as well. They're saying she's a famous trainer from the Johto region, but that's all a rumour for now.

The older trainers have brought up a recent disturbance in various parts of the region, most prominently in the Pokemon Mansion just yesterday. Apparently, they're targeting Cleffas, Starmies, and Pokemon of a similar spatial theming.

"Speaking of kidnappings... have you heard of the Psyduck cases?" a Battle Girl brings up. "Apparently, Psyducks have been going missing a lot."

Luce chokes on his gruel, catching everyone's attention. Monferno hands him a towel.

"Oh, I know that one!" a Lass says. "I came from North Sinnoh, and missing posters were everywhere! People are speculating there's an organized force behind this."

"I haven't heard anything in the Southern part of the region, though..."

"I've heard a bit!" a Breeder says. "Amity Park, a few days ago. Apparently, Psyducks in particular have been feeling unwell, so Nurse Joy's been pretty stumped."

Luce turns on his Poketch, "[My Psyduck went missing]."

Everyone reacts explosively, starting from the Picnicker he shows it to beside him. "Your Psyduck went missing?!"

"What? When?!"

"[Yesterday. I was at the Pokemon Mansion.]"

"What? The mysterious phenomenon's come that far down south? That's worrying!"

"Don't worry! I'm sure it'll be alright soon, since the Association's finally taking action. I hope you find her soon."

Luce manages to smile a little.

At least he knows he's not alone in this concern.

-

Luce doesn't manage to fall asleep, so he packs his things, and continues his journey at the hour of the ox.

He remembers Miss Fantina's words, about growing strong enough that people wouldn't have to worry about him, no matter how reckless he acted.

But Luce wanted to be strong, to be impulsive, to do whatever he wanted.

After all, the protagonist of this game charged straight ahead into danger, mindlessly knowing that it was his job, even if he was just a child. Because if he didn't do it, who would? He was a thrill-seeker, after all.

He reviews his chart of Pokemon he contemplated adding to his roster, in order to get a balanced team. His experience as a player of this game taught him things in a perspective only someone who knew what was coming would know.

He's a gamer. He had to take advantage of that fact.

Luce sighs, releasing Monferno, who looks at him curiously.

"Training," Luce signs, and Monferno squints, wondering why they had to do it at this hour. Monferno reaches for Luce's hand, holding it carefully like a child.

But Luce points forward, upward, and ahead.

Monferno follows the direction and finds a looming, eerie tower, haunting and hollow, emanating with all the signs of a Ghost Pokemon abode. Instantly, Monferno pales.

Luce takes a breath, calming himself down.

Psyduck wasn't here at the moment, but once Luce gets him back, they'll have Psychic coverage. Which means that what Luce needed on his team was Dark and Ghost coverage, either or. To his luck, the Lost Tower was right around the corner of Solaceon.

"Training," he repeats, ignoring the way Monferno clings to him, clutching tightly around his leg, a little terrified. "And, I want to catch a new teammate here."

Monferno whimpers, shaking his head.

Luce bravely walks on.