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Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

When me, Liko, and Roy were battling against the man who was too much of a coward to even show his face, I was really unsure if we were going to win. The odds were slim, especially with me participating as a new trainer, but somehow, we managed to do so well.

By working together, we were able to defeat Magneton and Beeheeyem with ease. But then, the villain brought out his Umbreon unexpectedly.

I looked over at the black haired girl beside me and smiled as I looked into her eyes, determined we could beat it too.

I turned back to the battle and realised Quaxly was about to get hit by a powerful Snarl attack. But then suddenly, Liko ran out and stood in the way, in front of Quaxly. I guess she didn't want my pokémon to get hurt.

But, she ended up getting hurt in the process because when the attack collided with her, it sent her hitting against the balcony of the ship.

My jaw dropped completely when this happened. Me and Liko had only just met face-to-face a few minutes ago, and for some reason, she just took the blow for my Quaxly. Why did she do that?

Me and Roy scrambled over to Liko with our pokémon following behind us. I held one hand tightly, and he held the other as we tried to get her to wake up.

"Liko! Liko! Wake up!" Roy yelled.

I put my hair up and realised how bruised she looked. Her hand felt ice cold, but I still held it regardless.

Suddenly, we looked up to see Friede arrive on the ship with riding on his Charizard with Captain Pikachu on his shoulder. And then, soon after that, a great beam of green light appeared. Rather than coming over to us first, he went to investigate that instead.

He then came back with Liko's pendant a few minutes later but stopped in his tracks when he saw her lying on the floor with us on the brink of tears as we sat beside her.

"What happened here?!" He asked.

"Liko saved Quaxly from getting hurt, but... this happened..." I muttered, my voice starting to sound emotional, which made me feel vulnerable, but I just couldn't stop myself.

Friede bent down and then put his hand gently onto Liko's chest, trying to feel a pulse from her heart. He then shook his head and sighed.

"Does this mean?" Roy questioned, his eyes starting to tear up.

"Yes, I'm sorry to say but-" Friede was about to say, but I just couldn't let him.

"No! No! This can't be right!" I shouted over the top of him, trying to stop him from admitting the obvious truth.

Sprigatito started to whimper as it didn't quite know what was going on, but it could obviously tell something wasn't right. It was beside me and made me feel the need to try and bring its owner back.

I then started to shake Liko's cold body with tears beginning to trickle down my cheeks, hoping desperately I could bring her back.

"Liko! Liko! You have to wake up!" I shouted as I shook her.

"Dot..." Friede sighed.

"Please! We only just became friends, and I can't have lost you already!" I continued to cry and shake

"Dot!" Friede yelled.

I refused to listen to him, so I snatched the pendant that he was holding and then put it around the girl's neck. It had previously been glowing with a blinding light, but as soon as it touched Liko's heart, the light faded out until it went fully dark.

"Dot, you need to listen to Friede!" Roy yelled, started to cry to which made his voice crack as if he were a teenager, "I know how much this hurts but, when someone is dead, you can't bring them back!"

"But we can!" I argued, "Her pendant has magical abilities, and maybe if we can get that pokémon that lives inside it to come out, it could maybe bring it back!"

"Every time it comes out, it puts Liko at risk of being hurt. It's a dangerous thing, and we can't just experiment with it!" Friede said.

"Liko is dead anyway, so the worst thing that could happen is she just won't come back, but we have all the right equipment and people to make sure it does work!" I replied.

Friede took a deep breath before saying, "I guess we can try, but for now, we need to get you two back since it is very late!"

He jumped onto Charizard's back, and Roy did the same. I picked up Liko and then got on, too, with Fuecoco and Quaxly, following behind.

As we all flew back to the airship, I looked over at Roy but found he had his his arms crossed, and I could hear him sniffling.

"Roy..." I sighed, "I'm sorry..."

He didn't respond, though. If anything, after that point, he didn't make a noise for the rest of the way. Without any kind of reassurance, I hugged Liko and her Sprigatito tightly and just hoped that she would be okay...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

Last night, I barely got any sleep. I had just stared up at the ceiling all night, thinking of poor Liko.

I just felt so guilty that I let that happen to her, I had let her get all bruised up and die. It just hurts me so much and those thoughts restrained me from falling asleep.

But also, I remembered the way she looked at me when we were about to battle the Umbreon and the way she smiled. I felt I had let her down a lot by not trying to jump in and save her.

Because I couldn't take this anymore, I decided to check my Rotom Phone. It was 6:30 am, which I felt was a reasonable time to get out of bed, so that's what I did.

I dislike looking in mirrors since I don't really like the way I look, but when I did take a glance at the one in my bedroom, I found that my eyebags now looked very clear when I put my hair up.

I did look sad in the mirror, but I wasn't too bothered, especially because I was too tired to be able to care.

I exited my room and closed the door behind me before creeping down the hallway. There weren't any lights on so I knew I had to be quiet otherwise I would wake someone up.

Since my stomach was rumbling as I didn't have any dinner yesterday after what happened, I decided to head over to the kitchen. But to my suprise, when I entered, I found Friede sitting down at the roundtable, drinking a bottle of whiskey.

"Why are you up so early?" He asked, taking a sip from the bottle and staring at me sternly

"Why are you?" I asked, smiling smugly.

Friede sighed and then said, "I just couldn't get any sleep after... what happened yesterday..."

"Neither could I..." I mumbled in response.

I flipped on the switch and the light did blind both of us at first, but we quickly adjusted. I then poured some milk into a glass before sitting next to him as he chugged down the rest of the alcohol.

"How is Roy?" I asked, immediately trying to stear the conversation away from the reason why we were both tired and upset.

"I could tell that he was very upset and I could hear him crying while I was walking past your bedrooms to get to mine last night," Friede replied.

"Wow, and I thought he was acting cold after what happened..." I said.

"He's just as upset as you are, but you have to understand we are all at different stages of grief after what happened," He explained.

"Oh... that makes sense," I came to the realisation.

There was a moment of silence and then I again tried to start a conversation about something other than Liko, but then that was difficult since she was swarming my mind.

"So, what are we going to do? We can't just leave her lying over there, it's pretty disturbing," I said, pointing at her body all scattered out in the corner of the room.

"I'll try and sort something out, right now you just need to try and not think about her too much," Friede replied, "You'll just feel worse..."

"It's kind of difficult when she's right over there!" I muttered with a lop-sided smile, my eyes' gaze switching from him to Liko multiple times.

He sighed and then got up from his seat. He walked over to the corner of the room and then picked her up gently and placed her in a cupboard nearby.

The rest of the Rising Voltacklers woke up shortly after and we all had breakfast together. Roy refused to look me in the eyes but other than that, everything was running smoothly. That was until my uncle Murdock opened the cupboard and the black haired girl fell out and landed on his feet.

"THE FU-" He screamed, but was quickly cut off by Friede.

"Language, Murdock!" The white haired man said sharply, interrupting him.

"Sorry Friede!" My uncle replied and then gently picked up Liko and put her back in the cupboard before walking back to his seat.

Seeing my friend once again and now looking paler before was too much for me and made me lose my appetite. So I put down the fork I was eating my pancakes with and marched out of the room.

I shut the door behind me but before I could jump onto my bed and cry into my pillow, I got a knock on my door. I did have the feeling that someone had followed me to my room so I creaked it open slowly to find Friede was there.

"I think it would be best if you just stayed in here for the rest of the day, I'll try and sort it all out for you," He said in a whisper.

"Okay, thanks," I replied.

He closed the door behind me and then I was left alone in my bedroom with nothing but my dark thoughts... but I refused to let them take over again like they did last night.

It would be too much for me to try and shoot a new video but because I desperately wanted to be productive, I just decided to edit an uncompleted project instead.

That was quite quick to do so after I posted it I managed to catch an Iono Zone stream. I decided to spam her with hate comments for the rest of the day so I could let out my repressed anger out on someone I knew wouldn't take it too seriously.

I also decided to feed and play with Sprigatito too. I wanted to try and form a bond with it too just in case Liko didn't come back, and I feel I'm doing really well to keep it happy at the moment.

When that was all finished, I then jumped onto my bed and relaxed. The start of the day had been rough, but I managed to get through it. I'm so proud of myself!

Suddenly, I got a knock on my door again. At first I thought it would be Friede again, but when I opened the creaky door, I found that on the other side was Orla and Mollie.

"Good afternoon Dot!" Orla greeted, waving with her iconic smile that was always glued to her face.

"Oh, hello Orla and Mollie!" I replied, waving back, "What are you two doing here?"

"We recommend you come along with us," Mollie said, gesturing for me to follow behind her as she walked off.

"What she's trying to say is we have a suprise for you, it's a good one!" Orla clarified and then ran to catch up with the pink haired lady

Full of confusion but also curiosity, I then followed behind the two. I followed them all the way until we ended up arriving at the door that led to the power room.

"Are you sure I should be going in there?" I asked, "I've ruined a lot of things recently... I don't want to crash the airship too!"

"You'll be fine!" Mollie replied and opened the door.

I followed behind them up the stairs until we arrived in the power room. These types of things really interest me and I wanted to observe everything and take it all in but... something caught my eye.

Right at the very end was a glowing transparent column with what looked like a person inside. I ran closer to find that in there was... Liko...

I turned around and then found that now Orla and Mollie were wearing lab coats even though just a second ago they weren't? This is all starting to freak me out!

"What's going on?!" I exclaimed, full of worry and fear.

"Don't panic! Everything will be okay!" Orla said, "Now, let's begin."

"So earlier today, Friede told us about everything that happened yesterday and, we want to help," Mollie explained, "And that's why we have decided to create this mission that we call 'Project Halo'."

"What does that stand for?" I questioned.

"IT MEANS WE'RE BRINGING HER BACK TO LIFE, BABY!" Orla exclaimed, hugging Mollie tightly, but she let go quickly from embarrassment and cleared her throat while blushing, "But in acronym terms, I guess it can stand for 'Helping Angel Live On'?"

"But how are we going to bring her back?" I asked.

The brown haired lady put her hand in her lab coat pocket and then pulled out my best friend's pendant with the gem in the centre now shining once again.

"Liko's pendant!" I squealed, happy to know it was still working, "But how will this bring her back?"

"Well, we're not fully sure, but we think you may be the key to helping us unlock the door of mysteries!" Orla explained.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I replied.

"Put it on and it will all make sense," Mollie answered.

The brown haired lady placed the pendant in my hands and then stepped back to hold the pink haired woman's hand. I then shrugged my shoulders and put the pendant on.

I closed my eyes tightly to avoid the blinding light but a few seconds later I opened my eyes but found it wasn't glowing any differently.

"You need to think of Liko and how much you want her to come back!" Orla said.

"But it hurts too much to think of her..." I mumbled.

"You just need to try, we can bring her back but we need you to do this first!" She replied.

I nodded and then thought of Liko and everything that happened. It hurt, but then I opened my eyes and found the gem of the pendant start to glow brighter.

"It's working!" Mollie exclaimed, "Keep going!"

"But how is this happening?!" I exclaimed.

"This is only happening because your heart is connected to Liko's in some way!" Orla answered.

"What's so special about me?" I asked.

"We don't know yet but you need to focus!" The pink haired woman replied and covered the brown haired lady's mouth to stop her from continuing to speak, which made Orla flustered.

I took a deep breath and continued. It was hard to keep my eyes shut since the light was getting brighter and brighter but I managed to keep them closed until I suddenly heard a noise that didn't sound human.

"Hmmm?" It said.

I opened my eyes to find that hovering right before me was the pokémon that lives inside Liko's pendant. actually, it was her pendant! I was left jaw-dropped as I stared into its sparkling blue eyes.

Orla and Mollie walked up to me and smiled when they saw the pokémon.

"Well done Dot, I knew you could do it!" Orla exclaimed.

Mollie nodded with a smile and then said, "Good job, now for the next part, you'll need this!"

She placed a knife in the palm of my hand.

"What's this for?" My voice started to tremble as I looked at my open hand.

"For the next part, we need to to gently stab the tip of the knife into this pokémon's neck," The pink haired woman explained, "Then we will collect the blood."

I was starting to shake nervously as it felt wrong for them to put all this responsibility on me when I'm only ten years old and have no idea what I'm doing.

"But of course you don't have to!" Orla reassured me after she noticed my reaction, "You've done enough work for us today so if you don't want to do this you can hand over the knife over and we'll do it for you!"

"Yes please," I replied and handed the knife over to her.

Orla handed the knife over to Mollie and the pokémon turned around to look at her. Suddenly, a green dome appeared around the three and I stood back and watched as everything was playing out.

It was difficult to watch as Mollie stabbed the knife into it, but luckily the procedure was quick.

After the green dome dissappear, the two woman walked over to me.

"And that's all for today!" Orla said.

"We just need to do some scientific tests on the blood overnight but by tomorrow, we can then bring Liko back," Mollie explained.

"Really? Thank you so much!" I exclaimed, beaming up at them.

"No problem, goodnight and sweet dreams!" Orla replied and waved me off.

And with so much more energy, I ran back to my bedroom. I explained everything to Sprigatito and then when I was done, I fell asleep quite quickly, dreaming of seeing my friend again...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

The next day, I woke up with a smile instantly appeared on my face. Today was it, today would be the day I would see Liko again!

I was so excited and energetic so I jumped out of bed quickly and got dressed. I checked the time after and found that it was 7:00 am which was perfect timing so I left my room with Sprigatito following behind me.

As I was running rapidly down the corridors, I was stopped suddenly when I saw Friede stretching and yawning as he had only just woken up.

"Why do you have so much energy today?" He asked.

"Because we're bringing back Liko today!" I replied.

"Already? I thought it would be a much longer process!" Friede exclaimed.

"I thought so too but I guess not, now come with me!" I responded and started tugging on his jacket sleeve and dragged him along.

We ran to the energy room and up the stairs until we arrived. But for some reason, neither Orla and Mollie or Liko were there. The column that she was inside was gone too.

"Maybe let's go to the infirmary?" He suggested.

"Yeah, it would make sense for them to be there," I agreed.

We went back down the stairs and then went all the way to the infirmary. When we went inside, we found Orla and Mollie sitting and chatting while Liko was lying on the hospital bed. I ran up to the bed but found she was still in a deep sleep, probably a coma.

"Good morning you two!" Orla greeted.

"Good morning, is she okay?" I asked.

"Mollie was able to detect a faint heart beat earlier so we do believe she is alive!" She said.

"Oh thank Arceus!" I breathed a sigh of relief.

I looked over and found Mollie rummaging through some drawers. Then suddenly, she pulled out a syringe that contained a green liquid.

"What's that for?" I asked, shuddering at the thought of the syringe as I have a fear of needles.

"Inside of it is the blood we extracted from the pokémon yesterday!" Orla answered.

"Oh," I replied.

All of us watched as Mollie walked over to sleeping Liko and then stabbed the syringe into her arm. She quickly covered it with a green Sprigatito plaster and put the black haired girl's blue jacket back on.

I stepped a little closer and watched Liko, hoping she would wake up. And then, she did, but something was different...

She opened her eyes but their was something so amazing about them. They were now a darker shade of blue with a green iris. And now, instead of having a black pupil, it was white instead and was in the shape of a star, just like the pokémon from yesterday!

"Liko?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.

She raised an eyebrow too and after a few blinks, her eyes went back to normal and she remembered me.

"Dot!" She exclaimed, hopping off of the bed.

"Liko!" I cried, opening my arms out.

She launched herself into me and we then hugged. I was so happy that she was alive again!

After Liko let go, Orla and Mollie walked up to us.

"So, did you feel any different a minute ago?" The brown haired lady asked.

"No, I only woke up a few seconds ago," Liko replied, looking very puzzled as to what she was talking about.

"What just happened with her?" I asked, "Will she be okay?"

"She will be fine, it's just that Liko may experience a few side effects as her DNA has just been mixed with that of a pokémon," The pink haired woman explained .

"What's going on?" Liko asked.

"Basically you died, I begged Friede to bring you back, Orla and Mollie became scientists, they stabbed your pendant pokémon and then put its blood into you," I summarise.

"Oh," She replied, trying to process the information.

"Maybe you two should go out and get some fresh air, Liko is going to need it after being stuck in that test tube!" Orla suggested.

"Stuck in that what?" The black haired girl questioned.

"Let's just get going!" I intercepted, taking hold of her hand and leading her out of the room.

As we walked along the corridor, we easily started reconnecting and chatting. It's like nothing happened at all.

But then, Liko remembered something, something I just desperately wanted to forget...

"Hey, we should go get Roy!" She exclaimed.

"Okay, sure," I mumbled in response.

We both redirected ourselves and then walked over to Roy's bedroom. My friend knocked on the door and we them waited patiently.

"Could you just please leave me alone?!" Roy yelled, his voice sounding quite muffled through the door.

"Roy, it's me, Liko!" She said.

"Liko?" He questioned.

Suddenly, the door opened and Roy stood in the doorframe. His magenta eyes lit up when he saw Liko and he quickly wrapped his arms around her.

I was a little jealous that it wasn't me hugging Liko, but I was happy that the pink haired boy was smiling again.

But then I went and messed it up.

"H-hi Roy!" I said, my anxiety becoming very clear in my voice.

He turned to look at me but his eyes  narrowed and he didn't respond.

"Do you want to come with us outside?" I asked, my smile becoming more and more wobbly.

"No thanks," He said in an emotionless tone.

He motioned towards the door but Liko wanted him to come with us so she tapped him on the back. He turned around and his magenta eyes lit up again.

"Please Roy, it will be so much more fun if you come along!" She begged.

He tried to keep a straight face as he battled his emotions but eventually he gave in.

"Fine," He sighed and then walked off, towards the exit door of the airship.

I was happy that she was able to persuade him to come with us but then once he was out of sight, she turned towards me.

"What happened between you two?" She asked.

I then started to have flashbacks from when I had tried to reach out to Roy a few days ago but failed.

"I'll explain later..." I muttered and then walked away...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

I finally caught up with Roy just as the Brave Olivine was landing. I decided it was best not to engage in conversation with him, so I waited patiently until Liko found us.

We then opened the door and walked down the stairs together.

As I was walking down, suddenly something blew into my face. I pulled it off and then realised it was a Bramblin before I then let it blow away.

I then realised that we were in some sort of barren desert that I had never seen before. Not that I had ever really seen anything in real life before.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"Asado Desert!" I heard a voice shouting from behind us.

We all turned around and looked up to see Friede run down the stairs, Captain Pikachu on his shoulder.

"Oh so we're near Cascarrafa?" I asked, "I've heard that the gym leader of that town is also a chef!"

"Yes, that's right!" Friede responded, "You kids are free to venture around the dessert or go to Cascarrafa if you want!"

"Thank you!" Liko expressed her gratitude before taking mine and Roy's hand, "Let's go!"

She dragged both of us down the stairs but then none of us were sure what to do next.

"Should we stay in Asado Desert or go to Cascarrafa?" The black haired girl asked.

"I don't mind..." Roy muttered and shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, it is quite windy here so maybe Cascarrafa?" I suggested.

"Sure!" Liko responded and then dragged us across the sandy dessert.

Soon enough we arrived in Cascarrafa, also known as The City Of Water. The name does make sense as all I could see for miles was blue and water.

We wandered around the city for a while and took in the sights. Even though all of the blue was hurting my eyes, the place was very beautiful.

While we were walking along, Liko was leading while me and Roy followed behind her. I really wanted to say something to Roy to make things less awkward but... I just didn't know what to say.

I could easily enough make an awkward joke to brake the tension but it would only be for a split-second as I knew he probably wouldn't respond, and what would be the point if it would only leave me looking like an embarrassing loser?

I could tell Liko was very confused by all of this but I didn't know when or if I should tell her what happened. I worry it would upset her, but then again maybe she'll feel more self-conscious the longer I avoid telling her.

But as we were walking along, Roy suddenly stopped.

"I think I want to have a look around here on my own if that's okay with you, Liko?" He said.

Liko stopped and turned around.

"Are you sure?" She questioned with a concerned expression, obviously very worried about him.

He nodded and then she frowned sadly with hesitation before reluctantly nodding too. The boy then walked off and that left an awkward silence between me and her as we were left on our own.

She then looked over at me and with a deep breath, the conversation began.

"What happened while I was gone?" Liko asked.

"I don't want any of this to hurt you though..." I muttered in protest.

"I'm not a child, I can take it!" The black haired girl argued with her eyebrows furrowed and determination in her voice.

I could tell she wasn't going to back down, so I sighed and reluctantly had to tell her.

"When we thought you... died, I was in denile over it and I was convinced you were still alive and there was a big argument and that triggered Roy because he was certain you were dead and he wasn't coping very well and he's been distant towards everyone and even more avoidance of me," I explained.

I could tell Liko's heart had dropped after hearing that as she gripped the end of her blue jacket and look down at the floor with guilt.

"So it's... all my fault?" She asked, not able to look me in the eyes as she said it.

"No! Of course not! If anything it's my fault for the distance between me and Roy, in no way is it your fault!" I replied, shaking my head as I did.

I tried to offer her a reassuring smile but it didn't feel right on my face and I could tell it wouldn't make her feel any better because she couldn't even look up to see it.

I knew she wasn't going to stop blaming herself straight away so I would just have to distract her instead. Think Dot, think...

"You know, we haven't had breakfast yet so maybe we should go and find somewhere to have lunch, if you want?" I suggested.

Stupid Dot! Why would I suggest getting lunch when I don't even like eating? I bet there isn't going to be anything that I'll like around here anyway...

Liko looked up at me and still with a sad look in her blue eyes, she nodded. We then carried on walking but now towards where the food places were.

I wanted to hold her hand to make her feel better, hell I even wanted to hug her during this moment, but I really don't like touch. I'm sure her hands are very soft and she would really appreciate the act of comfort, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

Before we could make it to the food places, Liko stopped in her tracks and I looked over in the same direction as her. In the corner of a street two children that looked to be only a few years younger than us were throwing a ball at a bruised Phampy and taunting it.

I looked over at the black haired girl stood beside me and I was frightened by how her sadness had quickly turned to rage at the sight of a pokémon being bullied. Her hands that were once gripped on her jacket were now clenched in a fist. Her teeth were gritted, her eyebrows furrowed and, her eyes...

Her eyes were just the same as they were when she woke up. The eyes that looked just like Terapagos'...

Liko tried to stomp over towards them and probably send the kids flying towards the sun but I had to grip my hands tightly to her shoulders and pull her away.

She grunted and tried to keep on going but even with what little strength I had physically I had to hold her back.

People were now all starting to stare and some were now getting out their Rotom Phones. Sweat dripped down my forehead as I began to panic.
"Liko, you need to calm down!" I yelled, trying to snap her out of her trance.

She screeched in protest and shook my hands off of her. The black hair girl then turned around and pushed me to the floor.

I landed on my back and cried out in the pain before gritting my teeth. That was enough for Liko to come back to reality as her eyes went back to normal, and when she saw me struggling to get up before her, they widened with tears escaping.

"Dot!" She cried as she ran over to me and knelt down on the floor before me, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine..." I sighed.

It's not a complete lie though. Sure my back was in pain but it's not the worst possible injury for anyone to ever face.

Tears began to fall to the floor as Liko looked down with guilt once again.

"I'm so sorry!..." She sobbed as she began to rock back and forth with her arms wrapped around her legs, her face now buried in her knees.

"It's okay!" I tried to reassure her, but honestly I need to stop trying to do that because it isn't helping anyone, "We should start going now..."

Liko looked up and I held out my hand towards her. She looked it and I then helped her up.

As we tried to walk away, a ball hit the back of the black haired girl's shoes and we turned around to see that the kids from before were now making faces at her, treating her how they did with the poor Phampy.

Her eyes went like Terapagos' again as she snarled at them. I looked around at everyone else and realised people were still filming so in a frantic panic I ran away, dragging the vicious girl along with me.

I found Roy standing underneath a tree and ran over to him. He tried to look away and not give his attention to me but I wasn't having that right now.

"Roy, we need to go!" I shouted.

"You can go if you want but you can't tell me what to do..." He muttered, still not facing in my direction.

Liko then squealed, with the noise sounding eerily similar to that of the pokémon her eyes kept on resembling, and Roy then finally turned to look at us, but more specifically her.

His eyes widened with shock when he saw her in this state and he then looked at me. He nodded with a concerned expression and we then ran our of Cascarrafa and back to the Brave Olivine.

As we sprinted across the hot sand, I was unsure of how I was going to explain this all to the others, especially Friede...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

We ran across the desert as quickly as we could until we arrived outside of the Brave Olivine. We then climbed up the stairs and knocked on the door so we could be let in.

None of us spoke to each other as we waited. Me and Roy just occasionally glanced over at Liko to make sure she was okay, and sometimes at each other, but we were under too much stress to try and communicate how we felt at the time.

The door opened waiting on the other side was Friede, with Captain Pikachu on his shoulder. His face was stern an his eyes flickered a few times between me and Roy and then at Liko before letting us go inside. But when we did and sighed with relief that we were finally out of the sandy desert, he stated,

"I think we need to have a meeting immediately."

We both nodded and then each of us took one of Liko's hands before we attempted to lead her to the conference room. It took some time as she kept on getting sidetracked by the smallest little things, but we managed to get her in there eventually.

Friede opened the door for us and we led her inside. I was quickly caught off guard when my uncle Murdock came running up and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into a big hug without asking first.

"Dot! I'm so glad you're okay!" He cried out as he did so.

I struggled with the sudden contact, especially because hugs aren't really my thing, but I tried to be grateful and return it. However, I was confused because he doesn't usually make a big deal when I return back from going somewhere, or at least not with so much emotion as right now.

"I'm glad to see you too?" I responded, "What happened?"

"You and Liko are all over the news at the moment!" He explained, "Have you not heard that?"

"We are?!" I exclaimed.

Orla, who was standing by the smart board, turned it on to reveal today's news report which included a picture of me and Liko at the centre of the screen. Mollie theb came us to us and pulled out her Rotom Phone and swiped through a few videos that had clips of the black haired girl growling at the children and some of her pushing me over. It was difficult to watch...

"How did these spread so quickly?" I questioned.

"Dot, you of all people would know how fast news spreads, especially stuff like this," Roy answered.

"Not the right time, Roy!" I snapped.

"Geeze! I was just answering your question!" He yelled back at me before muttering, "I thought you would be happy I'm finally talking to you again..."

"Both of you, stop it!" Friede shouted, our attention immediately being drawn to him, "Right now is not the time to fight!"

"Now then, should we start the meeting?" Orla asked.

All of us nodded before we then decided to take our seats. It wasn't hard to get Liko to sit down as her eyes were drawn to the light of the smart board and I sat down next to her and held her hand tight. The white haired man stood at the centre of the board while Orla stood out of the way so she could flip through the contents of the presentation.

"As we all know, this happened just a few minutes ago," He said as he pointed to the news article on the board, "And it's spreading around very quickly, which isn't good for us."

"Yeah, some of these videos have already gotten a million views," The pink haired woman added as she continued scrolling on her phone.

"And with so many people having seen this, we have no idea what we can do," Friede continued, "So, until we can sort things out, the three of you are grounded and won't be allowed to leave the airship."

"What have I done?!" Roy exclaimed, slamming his hands on the table as he stood up.

"None of you have done anything wrong," Orla said, before muttering under her breath, "Except for maybe Liko..."

"We're just doing this to keep you all safe until we understand what is wrong with Liko and can fix the problem," Friede responded.

"But what about me?" He asked.

"You have also been spotted with them, so it's better if you stay put too," Mollie answered as she showed him a clip of the three of us running away from Cascarrafa.

"I mean, that's completely fine with me, but are we not able to just disguise ourselves when we go out?" I suggested.

"That's a better plan for after we've done a few tests on Liko to see what has happened to her," The brown haired woman responded, "But I do like your thinking!"

"Now then, let's start getting this airship on the move before people find where we are and start coming after us!" The white haired man announced as he started to leave the room.

Murdock got up from his seat to go after him and Roy also left his to storm out of the room. I turned over to look at Liko and I squeezed her hand as I tried to give her a reassuring smile, but she her eyes still looked like Terapagos', so I knew I wasn't doing anything to help her.

Suddenly, as I was about to get up, she blinked a few times and her eyes returned back to normal. She then looked around the room quickly with confusion.

"What happened?" She squeaked with panic, "How did we get from Cascarrafa to here?"

"Liko, did you not hear any of the meeting we just had?" Mollie asked from across the table.

The black haired girl thought about it for a few seconds before shaking her head.

"Don't worry, that's fine!" Orla reassured her, "We'll go over everything with you again once we're all feeling better and are safely out of here!"

I decided to sit back down again and I held Liko's hand once more to try and help calm her. She looked really stressed out from not understanding anything that was going on at the moment, but I could tell she appreciated the kind action.

Once Friede came back with news that Captain Pikachu was flying us towards Levincia, I decided to leave the room while he was about to go over everything from the meeting again. I could tell my best friend ready wanted me to stay by her side through it, but I knew it was better if I let them talk about it with her privately instead whike I could try and recompose myself.

I stood by the wall just outside of the room and waited until their discussion was over. I did take a few deep breaths as I hadn't realised how stressed I was over the situation myself but I mostly just disassociated from the world for a little while.

I had thought about maybe going to check on Roy, but I knew he needed his space as well, so I left him to himself.

After some time, the door then opened again and Liko walked out. She turned towards me and immediately wrapped her arms around me before she began to sob into my shoulder. I hadn't been prepared for this to happen but I tried to be as comforting as possible.

"Liko, are you okay?" I asked, "Was the news really that bad?"

"It's n-not that..." She sniffled, "I'm s-sorry I hurt you!"

I pulled away from the hug so she could see my face and the reassuring smile that was on it.

"Don't worry about me, I'm completely fine!" I replied, putting my hands on her shoulders, "You need to be more worried about yourself at the moment with everything that's happening!"

"B-but I still pushed you over hurt you and I feel really guilty about it!" She protested.

"Yeah, and that's fine, but you shouldn't beat yourself up about it!" I argued, "You had no control over that situation because you were in some kind of a trance, and I get it, I understand and I forgive you!"

She wrapped her arms around me again, and this time she embraced me tighter. I did the same back and I could sense she was starting to feel a little more at ease now.

"So, when are they going to start experimenting on you?" I questioned.

"Today..." The black haired girl answered, "As soon as I've finished speaking to you..."

"I'm sure you'll be fine and that they'll put you to sleep for it," I responded.

"But will that be okay?" She asked.

"You were fine the last time, you will be this time as well!" I grinned.

"Thank you, Dot..." She smiled and squeezed my hand, "You're such a good friend..."

The compliment caught me off guard and I didn't know quite how to respond, especially because I had doubt towards how much I resonated with that comment, but I tried to respond as best as I could.

"No problem!" I replied, "I'm just glad I can help!"

After that, Orla and Mollie then left the room and turned towards us, signalling to Liko that it was time for the tests to begin. She pulled me into one last hug before we waved goodbye and she walked off with them.

I really hope she will be okay...

Chapter Text

Amethio's POV:

I was in deep thought as I walked down the streets of Levincia with Ceruledge at my side. We were now turning the corner of an alleyway and as we did so, found that I was starting to grow increasingly frustrated.

I had been told by Spinel that the girl with the pendant was around here, but me and my subordinates have now been wandering around the city for hours, and yet we still haven't found her. I thought we would have at least seen her by now so we could just take what we need and get out of here, yet...

We're still here.

I don't really want to do this, especially because she reminds me so much of what I used to be like, back before everything fell apart, but I have to do this, to keep everyone safe...

I would like to think that he wasn't lying when he said he was close to getting the pendant, but then again, I'm not so sure. Spinel does like to tease and take advantage of me whenever he can, so I don't know if I can exactly trust every word he says, yet sometimes he does still get in my head.

Especially when he reminds me of how I used to be a-

"Amethio sir!" I heard a voice call from behind me.

I stopped and turned around to find Onia running up to me, shortly followed by Zirc catching up with us. They were both panting and exhausted when they came to a hault, which did annoy me as it felt like they were wasting my time, but I didn't admit that to them, especially because of how nice they have been to me.

"Sorry sir, but we've just found something we think you would really like to see!" The blue haired woman announced briskly.

"What is it?" I asked nonchalantly.

The olive haired man then pulled out his Rotom Phone and showed it to me. The latest news in Paldea began to play on the screen and, at first, I wasn't interested, but then my attention piqued when I saw it...

A video was then shown on the news channel that had the girl with the pendant at the centre of it. She was with another girl that I didn't recognise, but that wasn't the confusing thing that I was focused on.

She looked... different. Her eyes looked similar to those of the pokémon that lives inside of the piece of jewellery. That's interesting...

"Where and when is this video from?" I questioned.

"Cascarrafa, and this is from a few minutes ago," Zirc answered.

So Spinel was lying to me?! Again?!

How can I keep on letting myself get fooled by him?...

"Then why didn't you come to me a few minutes ago then?!" I exclaimed as I was now struggling to keep my cool.

"We are very sorry, sir!" Onia apologised, "We came as fast as we could but we couldn't find you straight away because you wander-"

She stopped her sentence when I turned my back on her. I'm trying to keep myself from snapping at them both, but they really do get on my nerves sometimes...

"Would you like us to start heading to Cascarrafa, sir?" The olive haired man asked.

"Yes, but I'll be staying here," I turned my head to answer clearly.

"Are you sure you want to stay here alone?" The blue haired woman questioned with a concerned expression.

I nodded before saying, "I need some time alone..."

"Understood, Amethio sir!" Zirc saluted.

He span on his heel and was about to march off before his partner then tapped him on the shoulder. I saw her whisper something in his ear as I was about to turn away, but before I could get anywhere, I heard her speak up again.

"Sir, there's one more thing!" Onia called.

I stopped but didn't turn around to look at them directly. She understood this and continued with what she had to say.

"I know this is very unprofessional but, me and Zirc are worried about you..." The blue haired woman admitted, "We're aware of everything going on and we were thinking maybe we could try and help-"

"I don't need any help!" I yelled, my voice cracking, "I'm fine and-"

"But please, just look!" She cried.

I turned around to see her face scrunched up as she held out a piece of paper towards me. I walked up to get a closer look of what it had to say, but as soon as I read the top line, I felt myself freeze.

Adoption form...

"We accept you just the way you are and we want to look after you!" Onia spluttered before turning to her partner with an affectionate smile, "Together!"

Zirc nodded and then both of them turned to back to look at me. I know their weak but reassuring smiles were supposed to make me feel warm, but I only felt an uncomfortable cold feeling inside of me hearing all of this...

I know it would be for the best if I went through with this, but I can't. I can't let everything fall apart again, especially now that I could do something to stop it from happening again.

"I'll think about it," I answered bluntly before turning my back on them.

"That's all we ask!" They both responded in unison, their tone a mix of cheerfulness but also strain.

I began to walk away as I heard the couple summon their Skarmories and then fly away from the alleyway, letting myself get fall into even deeper, darker thoughts then I had been having before. Ceruledge noticed this and kept on giving me worried looks, but I was slowly starting to lose care about that, or anything for that matter.

I know they are just trying to help, but right now isn't the time for things to start breaking apart again-

And neither is it the right time to be getting a call from my Rotom Phone. I wanted to ignore it, but Ceruledge was pointing at it vigorously while trying to get my attention, and when I finally looked, I knew why...

It was an incoming call from Spinel...

I could have just not answered, but when it comes to him, I don't really have much of a choice...

"Why hello, Amethyst!~" He greeted with his 'nice act', coated in bitter sweetness, "It's so great to see you!~"

Why must he call me by that name?...

"Why did you tell me she was in Levincia if she's actually in Cascarrafa?!" I snapped so I could get straight to the point and get this done with.

"Because she was in Levincia then, it's not my fault if she's too quick for you to catch us with!" Spinel raised his voice in return.

I grumbled to myself as he did have a point. We should have been faster...

"Anyway, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about," He then said.

"Wh-what then?" I questioned, confused by the sudden change of the plans I had of how this would go in my head.

"I overheard your subordinates talking about plans for you recently and, I don't like the sound of them," The teal haired man answered.

He heard? Why did they discuss this with him around?! Why weren't they more careful?!

"I've already d-declined and I have no intention on ch-changing my mind," I responded, trying my hardest not to stutter my words despite how scared I now felt, but I could still hear the cracks anyway.

And he could too...

"That better be the the case, because if not-" Spinel was about to threaten.

"I promise!" I cried.

"Good, now just continue being a good girl, or boy as you would probably say, and nothing bad will happen," He instructed.

"Yes, Spinel..." I reluctantly consented.

"Good girl, now I must be off now so please stay that way!~" The teal haired man sang with a fake facade of sweetness once more, "Goodbye, Amethyst!~"

I hit the red button on my Rotom Phone and then slammed my fist against the wall beside me without bothering to say my goodbyes to him. It made my partner pokémon flinch with fright, and I then sighed to myself.

Why can't he just get it right?!

But also, why can't I just get it right? Why do I have to be like this?...

I have one job, which is to get the pendant. As long as I do that, everything will okay, no one will get hurt and he won't have to keep on teasing me like this... but, why does it have to be so hard?

Whatever! I just need to find that girl and get the pendant, and then I won't have to deal with all of this anymore!

And even if that doesn't happen, at least if I finally do prove myself, things won't feel like they are breaking apart anymore...

I won't feel like I'm breaking apart anymore...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

It wasn't until the next day that I was able to see Liko again because of all the tests she had done. I was worrying about her non-stop yesterday and I'm very tired now but I'm really excited to see her.

I hopped out of bed, ran out of my room and dashed down the corridor until I was waiting outside of her room. Then, I knocked and waited patiently.

It took a minute before the door opened and a very exhausted looking Liko was revealed. I felt really bad for her, but I still couldn't help but let a smile creep onto my face because I was just so glad to see her.

"Good morning, Liko!" I greeted, "Are you okay?"

"The tests were really hard..." She mumbled sadly, "And they ran throughout the night too..."

"They did?" I questioned, "I'm really sorry about that..."

"It's okay, the good thing is that I'm probably going to be fine..." The black haired girl reassured me with a weak smile.

"That's great!" I responded, a light of happiness in me beginning to glow brighter, "I'm really glad everything is going to be okay!"

"Me too!" She replied, her smile becoming more genuine.

It's such a relief to hear all of that. Sure we still don't know exactly what's going on, but at least she is going to be okay!

That's all that matters to me...

I took her by the hand and led her to the roundtable where everyone was already awake and having breakfast. We both then say down together and awaited the conversations we were about to have about what we were all going to do going forward.

"Good morning, Liko and Dot!" Friede greeted, "How are both of you?"

"Tired, but okay," I answered for the both of us.

"Yeah, we are really sorry about keeping you up all night for those tests! We didn't think they would take that long..." Orla apologised.

"It's okay!" Liko reassured her.

"So, what did you find out from those tests?" I asked.

"Well, it looks like Terapagos' DNA has now merged with Liko's because of the blood we injected in her, but we don't know much more than that," Mollie explained, "We will have to do further research on Terapagos to figure out how much this will affect her..."

"Will she definitely be okay?" I questioned.

"We're very sure she will be!" The brown haired woman reassured me.

I don't know why I keep on asking for constant reassurance, but it does help to just keep my mind at ease.

"What about Terapagos though? Will it be okay?" The black haired girl asked.

"We're unsure about Terapagos, it seems to be dormant at the moment but because we don't know enough about the pokémon, we can't be sure of what will happen to it," The pink haired woman answered.

"Oh okay," Liko nodded.

To be completely honest, I totally forgot about Terapagos. Sure I've been thinking about it a lot in terms with Liko, but not about how it actually is. I hope it will be okay too, but as she's said, we can't be completely sure.

But then how can we be completely sure of Liko? If both of their DNA has been merged, and we have no clue about the pokémon's state, how can we be completely sure about her?-

Calm down, Dot! They are all telling me it's going to be okay, so it will be! She will be okay!

"So, what do we all do now?" I questioned to tale my mind off of my conflicting thoughts, "Are we still grounded?"

"Well, I'm not actually sure..." Friede replied before then asking to the two woman, "What do you two think?"

"I do still worry for all of their safety, so I don't know if we should already be letting them back outside when it's only been a day since the incident..." Orla explained her point.

"Well, I think they should go outside! I think all of them need some fresh air after all of the stress!" Murdock piped up.

"What about the news stories though? It's still blowing up all over my feed!" Mollie argued before showing her phone and continuing to swipe to reveal lots of videos all of the same clip of Liko going savage.

I turned to look over her at I felt bad seeing how sad she looked to see herself in those videos, even if it wasn't truly herself. She wasn't in control, but people will probably never understand that or let that go.

"What about my suggestion yesterday with the disguises?" I asked, "Do you think that might work?"

"That could possibly work," Orla nodded.

"But, how are they going to be able to buy clothes without getting recognised?" Mollie asked.

"We could buy some for them?" The brown haired woman suggested.

"Doesn't that defeat the whole point of trying to get them outside though?" My uncle questioned.

The three adults argued back and forth and me and Liko sat there awkwardly and were unsure of what to do. This all must be a lot for her, and they clearly aren't helping to make the situation any easier.

Neither is the fact that Roy is still keeping his distance from me. I'm not suprised, but it doesn't help me feel any better. I feel guilty enough and I feel like he is just holding a grudge for the sake of it at this point-

"Okay, I think that's enough arguing!" Friede finally stepped up.

The three adults finally stopped debating and stayed quiet to listen to what the white haired man had to say.

"Why don't we just maybe try and let them outside and see how it goes?" He suggested, "We're getting close to Medali which, sure, is close to Cascarrafa, but is far enough way that not everyone will know who they are!"

"What if they do get recognised enough though?" Mollie questioned.

"Well, we can then learn from that mistake and move forward!" The white haired man answered.

"This sounds like a really bad idea..." The pink haired woman sighed.

"Mollie, it will be okay!" The brown haired woman put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "We've just got to trust the process!"

Trusting the process, huh?

"I guess so..." She muttered before turning to look at us, "Are you both okay with this?"

"I'm not exactly sure myself..." The black haired girl answered.

"And you, Dot?" Mollie asked.

To be honest, I don't know for sure myself. But, I didn't think it is is worth giving this a go.

I know this has all really knocked Liko's confidence, and it's definitely knocked mine too, but with everything she's done for me, I really need to do this, for both of us.

"I think we could give it a go," I answered.

"Are you sure?" The girl sat beside me turned to look at me with worry.

"Yeah, as Orla said, we've just got to trust the process!" I reassured her.

I still don't exactly understand what that means, but I could see a smile starting to light up on Liko's face, so it must work.

"It's settled then!" The white haired man decided, "We're going to Medali!"

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

It took an hour or two of waiting, but we were now finally in Medali. Me and Liko had been patiently waiting in my room, but once it was announced that we had arrived, we left and headed to the entrance of the airship.

Roy was already stood waiting there, but he didn't say anything to us. So, we then had to wait in silence until Friede came marching down the hallway with Captain Pikachu on his shoulder.

"Everyone, please make sure to look after yourselves and try to keep as low as a profile as possible!" He reminded us before instructing, "You are here to pick up clothes and get lunch, and as soon as you've done that, come back to the airship as soon as possible!"

"Right!" We all saluted.

He nodded and then smiled.

"Okay then, you're ready to go!" He announced.

"Pi-ka pika!" Captain Pikachu waved goodbye to us.

We waved our own goodbye before opening the door of the Brave Olivine and stepping outside. I then took Liko's hand as we walked downstairs, Roy following shortly behind us.

But, once we had arrived on the grass of the route just before the city, the pink haired boy was quick to speak up.

"I'm going to spend some time alone," He said.

"Don't you want to have lunch with us first? Or at least buy some new clothes with us?" I suggested.

"I'll do it alone," He dismissed those options.

"Okay, please look after yourself!" Liko called for him as he began to walk away.

He turned to look over his shoulder and smiled at the black haired girl.

"You too, Liko," He responded softly.

He then gave me a glare before turning to look back towards the path in front of him and walking into the city, leaving us behind. I sighed and then reassured the girl stood beside me that everything would be okay before we then entered the city ourselves.

Medali was a big city, a lot bigger than I thought it would be. It was also quite busy as well, which was overwhelming enough as it is without the added pressure of trying to not get recognised.

At first, it actually seemed quite easy. We walked through the streets hand in hand as we tried to look out for clothing shops and at first, everyone seemed to be too caught up in their own lives to notice us.

Although, after a few minutes of walking in circles and getting ourselves lost, I did start to notice a few people glancing at us weirdly. As we were starting to get hungry, we realised it would be better to try and get food first and then try and look again after.

I spotted a restaurant that I recognised the name of, The Treasury Eatery, from a few websites that I remembered searching on to help me out in a video recently related to food, and suggested it to Liko. She nodded and we then decided to head inside.

When we entered, no one really looked at us, which was good. We were able to get a table without too much hassle and once we were in a booth, we felt relatively safe.

Both of us opened up our menus but, not really to my suprise, there wasn't anything that I was particularly interested in eating. I'm a picky eater, so I wasn't expecting this to be easy, but I wasn't sure what to do either.

It didn't help that I could then hear people from the booth opposite to us begin to look our way and mutter to themselves. I took a deep breath and tried to remind myself that they were only one group of people, and that we would be fine.

"Is there anything you're interested in eating, Dot?" I heard Liko ask.

I looked up from my menu and smiled sheepishly.

"Not really..." I answered.

"We could go somewhere else if you want," She suggested.

"I know, but we're already here so we might as well just stay," I tried to argue.

We both then looked around and found that more people from other booths were staring. They seemed to be glancing between us and their Rotom Phones, which we could hear were playing the news story on repeat.

"Actually, on second thought, maybe we should leave?" I questioned.

"Yeah, I'm sure we'll find somewhere else to go!" The black haired girl responded.

We both got up from our booth, but as we did, I noticed that two identical looking men that didn't seem very friendly were also getting up from their booth at the same time. I tried to take Liko's hand and drag her out of there as quickly as possible without getting her anxious, but they were too quick and were now coming to approach us.

"Hey!" One of the men called.

"Uhhh hello?" My friend turned around and greeted them nervously.

Oh great, why does Liko have to be so polite?...

"You two look a lot like those girls on the news!" The other man commented.

"Oh w-we get th-that a lot!" I stammered, "B-but I can assure you we aren't!"

I tried to squeeze at the black haired girl's hand and pull her away from the situation, but the men weren't going to let us walk away that easily without making this all a scene.

"Hey, where do you think you two are going?!" The first men exclaimed.

"W-we were just leaving now!" Liko tried to turn her head to answer as we continued to try and walk away, but they kept on marching closer to us.

"But we're talking to you!" The other man shouted, "It's rude to walk away hen someone is talking to you!"

My friend then started to look upset as I began to worry she was going to end up flipping out of this continued. They really have to guilt trip her, don't they?

They also really have to bring this much attention to themselves, don't they?! They've already got a bunch of people filming all of this, do they really need to make this such a big scene?

"As my friend said, there's nothing we want here so we're going!" I snapped.

I then felt a pair of hands grip onto my shoulders, amd I noticed the same happen to Liko.

"Not on our watch..." One man muttered with a smirk.

"We're not finished with you two yet..." The other man added.

I struggled but I managed to pull away and then manage to drag Liko out of their grasp with me. I'm suprised I haven't managed to pull her arm off with how much I've had to tug at her with so much force to get her out of these situations recently.

"Hey, get back here!" One of them yelled.

We both shrieked and then bolted out of the door as quick as possible. The two men, who were very big and muscular, then began to chase after us.

We ran down the streets of Medali with them coming after us. They were surprisingly very quick, and I'm not the most athletic person, but I had to gey us out of here!

However, as they began to lose speed and we were very close to our exit, I thought we would manage to escape. That's when Liko turned around at the sound of pokémon emerging from their poké balls, her curiosity stopping us in our tracks.

One man had a Houndour and the other had a Poocheyana. The two pokémon looked very badly injured and unwilling to fight, but their trainers had other plans.

"Come on Houndour, get them!" Houndour's trainer snapped.

"What are you doing, Poocheyana?!" Poocheyana's trainer exclaimed, "They're right there!"

I knew the sad looks on the pokémon's faces and the sounds of their whimpers was tugging at my friend's heartstrings. I could also tell that this whole ordeal was probably insinuating a lot of emotion inside of her, and that if we don't get our quick, things were about to get messy...

"Come on Liko!" I called for her, "Now's our chance, we need to leave!"

"W-we can't just these poor pokémon here!" She protested, gritting her teeth.

As she tried to struggle out of my grasp, I noticed that as her eyes began to prickle with tears, they were also starting to shift to look like those of Terapagos'...

Oh no...

"LIKO!" I shrieked.

It was too late though, and as she finally managed to shake me off, a bright light enveloped her. I had to cover my eyes because of how blinding it was, but once it began to die down, I teared my eyes back to find that my friend's appearance had now changed...

Her mid-length black hair had now grown out longer and had become a light shade of blue with a few locks of green. Her green hairpin had now turned into a line of crystals. Her outfit was exactly the same, but she was now even taller than me and her eyes had now finally shifted to look like Terapagos'.

She looked so much like Terapagos now...

Before I could say anything, however, she blasted off towards the men as quick as the speed of light. I tried to chase after her, but by the time I got anywhere near her, she had already sent both of them flying into a nearby brick wall.

"What the hell?!" I exclaimed, my jaw-dropped.

The sound of my voice made the blue haired girl turn to look at me. She was in that weird state again where she wasn't properly herself, but seeing me made her regain her sense of self, and she snapped back to her old conscience.

"D-d-dot?..." She stuttered, her eyes glancing between me and looking down at her new appearance.

Before I could say anything, she fell to her knees and covered her eyes with her hands as she began to sob violently. I crouched down beside her and tried to stroke her hair reassuringly, but it wasn't working.

However, it was enough for her to transform back to normal.

As I continued to do so, I then heard some footsteps approaching from behind me. I tried to ignore them as Liko was practically having a panic attack right now and I needed to be there for her, but theb I heard their voice-

"DOT, HOW COULD YOU LET THAT HAPPEN?!"

It was Roy...

My head swivelled around to give him the angriest look I could muster. But, as I opened my mouth to screech back, no words left my mouth.

I didn't know what to say...

Or, I did know what to say, but I just couldn't bring myself to shout at him when I was feeling so scared and distraught.

"I'm sorry..." I mumbled, trying to hold in my tears but they still ended up escaping anyway, "Can we please go back to the airship?..."

His face flashed to a look of regret, but he was very quick to try and hide that. He forced his eyes to dart away as he nodded slowly.

"Yeah, we need to get out of here..." He agreed reluctantly.

So with that, he took both of our hands and led us back to the Brave Olivine. Both of us were still crying, but at least we would be safe now...

Chapter Text

Liko's POV:

"Umm Liko?" Dot said.

My emotions seem to be getting a lot more difficult to control because I was just so upset that I didn't even realise that she was trying to speak to me or that we had even arrived back in my bedroom.

I looked up and towards the door and found that they were stood there with a concerned look on there face. I was sure that Roy would be here to comfort us too, but I guess not.

"Yes?" I responded.

"Is it okay if I could quickly leave the room to go and get something?" She asked.

"Sure, that's fine!" I nodded.

They nodded in response and then left my room, leaving me with just my thoughts, as I had been left with even back when they were in the room. Dark thoughts that I would much rather not have, but I don't seem to have a choice about.

I don't really think I have a choice about anything anymore.

I used to have choices, but I would always just go with whatever someone else was to suggest, staying as compliant as I could to get by. But now, all I could possibly ask for is to have choices again.

Nothing really males sense anymore, not even I make sense anymore. Am I even still human? I don't seem to be with what I keep on hearing happens when I lose control of myself...

I don't understand how and why this keeps on happening. I guess strong emotions just seem to trigger something inside of me, especially things that make my blood boil...

Blood that isn't even my own...

My body doesn't even feel like my own anymore. I don't seem to have as much control over it anymore, so it might as well not be mine.

This things that keeps on taking me over makes me feel so nervous and distraught, but I can't communicate that without it then taking over once again. I've always been told that bottling emotions is bad, and yet I've still done it, but it's only now when I want to let my emotions out that I can't...

I'm suprised I was even able to come back into consciousness when I've been crying like this for a while now.

I was starting to think that maybe Dot had ran off and that she wasn't coming back, but then I heard rushing footsteps in the corridor, and then them appear in the doorway. They looked exhausted and yet they were still running around for my sake.

I feel like such a bad friend...

But, in her hands was my pendant. It seems that Terapagos must have gone back inside when it became dormant, and that as long as these instances keep on happening, it will likely stay in there.

"Here you go!" The pink haired girl announced as she placed it in my hand.

I let myself stare down at it for a while without saying anything. My mind began to wander once more as my eyes got lost in the glimmer of the jewel and it felt as it I was losing myself again too.

This was supposed to be a gift from my grandma, but it seems that it's only brought me pain and suffering.

It was supposed to help me find myself, but I feel lost more now than I've ever felt before.

Nothing feels right anymore, I don't feel right anymore-

"Are you okay?" Dot asked.

I sniffled as my nose was starting to get stuffy from crying so much and I wiped at my red eyes that were beginning go sting.

"I don't know..." I mumbled.

That is the most honest answer that I could possibly give.

"Neither do I..." They sighed as they sat down beside me, "I just thought maybe looking at this might help..."

I think it's done the complete opposite, but I appreciate her effort.

"Thanks.." I muttered, unable to bring my eyes up to look at her because they were so transfixed on the piece of jewellery.

The pendant is so pretty, it's such a shame just how much power it contains inside of it that has inevitably forced me into the role of a puppet to some unknown force that won't let me take control until the damage has been done...

I can't believe I could possibly hurt people, and that I will probably continue to hurt more people if this keeps on happening, which it will. I never thought I could possibly be capable of causing such harm, but the videos that keep on replaying in my mind seem to state otherwise.

Also the fact that I've now injured two men now that are double my size. I know in some way they deserved that, but ot wasn't right of me to do that, and I really hope they will be okay.

I hope I'll be okay too, but most of also I hope Dot will be okay. It feels like the closer she gets to me, the more likely she will get hurt, and I don't want that.

But I need their support, and they just keep on coming back to suffer the blows to her reputation as well as my own...

"How are you managing with all of this?" Dot questioned.

"Not very well, but I don't have much of a choice," I answered.

"I wish you could have a choice," She said.

"Me too," I replied, "But my only choice is to bottle up my emotions and hope for the best that it won't come out..."

"So, does it completely take you over?" They asked.

"Yes it does, and it's a horrible feeling," I responded.

It really is. Every time it takes control of me, I find myself in a dark, pitch black void. I can't see anything around me or even myself when I'm in there. I can't run or leave or shout or scream or feel anything aside from distress and terror that maybe I won't make it out this time. Maybe it will completely take me over this time and I won't be able to bounce back.

"I bet it is..." Dot sighed, "And I'm so sorry you have to go through with this..."

"It's fine, I've got a new responsibility now, and I'll just have to manage it," I replied.

"Wait, did you hear-" She was about to ask.

"Yes, or at least I heard enough of it," I interrupted.

What they are talking about is something I overheard in the last few minutes from who I believe is Friede, Orla and Mollie. I heard them talking in the room next door about how my new powers can come to good use to combat cruelty to pokémon, and that they are going to have a try at utilising it.

I tried to tune it out, but their words were too clear for me to do that, and I just didn't really want to think about it, especially will all of my other thoughts, but now it's the only thing I can possibly think about.

"Same..." They mumbled, "And I'm not sure how to feel about it..."

"If it's what needs to be done, then so be it," I said, "I guess it's good that at least I'll be doing something useful with this new ability..."

"Is it though?" The pink haired girl asked.

"It will be if I can take control," I answered.

"And what happens if you can't?" She questioned.

I don't want to think about that.

"Well, we'll just have to wait and see..." I finally bring myself to say.

Dot then leans in towards me to give me a hug, and I return it. I wish I could stay in the comfort of her arms forever, where the rest of the world doesn't exist and I don't have to worry about my existence causing harm to them, but alas, nothing can last forever...

I have a duty now, and all I can do is try my very best to fulfil my prophecy, even if it's not one I want...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

The next day, I got out of bed and motioned myself towards the hallway to then walk to Liko's door. I brought with me some papers of doodles that I had made last night of ideas I wanted to share with her, but I stopped and waited when I heard her talking to someone on the other side.

I didn't want to eavesdrop, but i couldn't help but put my ear against the door with curiosity. Luckily though, the door was quite soundproof, so I didn't have to.

Once I heard the talking stop, I then knocked with my free hand that wasn't carrying the pile.

"Come in!" She called.

I then opened the door and found Liko sitting on her bed with Sprigatito sleeping on her lap and her Rotom Phone in her hands. She must have been on call to someone as I don't think she was just talking to her partner pokémon.

"Who were you talking to?" I asked.

"Oh, I was just on call with my friend Ann from Indigo Academy," The black haired girl answered.

A friend called Ann, huh? I've never heard Liko talk about her before, but I'm glad she's got other friends too.

"What is all of that paper for?" Liko questioned.

"Well, last night I was thinking a lot about you and-" I was about to explain until the door burst open.

We both spun around to find Friede standing in the doorway with Captain Pikachu.

"Sorry to interrupt your conversation, but we've just arrived in Levincia!" He announced.

"Cool, thanks for letting us know!" I replied.

He then nodded and then walked away, closing the door behind him.

"What were you going to say, Dot?" The black haired girl turned to ask me.

"Don't worry, we can talk about it later," I replied and hugged the pile of paper close to my chest.

I walked up to the door and held it open for Liko as we both stepped through. We closed the door behind ourselves and then turned around to find Roy leaning up against a wall.

"Are you coming with us too?" My best friend stood beside me asked.

"I don't have much of a choice seeing as we're all pretty much wanted criminals at the moment..." The boy sighed in response.

"Oh don't say that, it's going to be a fun day out!" I replied.

"Whatever..." He mumbled and then walked on ahead of us.

I rushed back to my room to get myself a backpack to put all of my paper in and then ran back to Liko's side. From there, we held hands and walked down the staircase of the Brave Olivine together, stepping onto the path of Levincia.

Once we were all reunited, we then made our way into the city. Luckily, despite how big Levincia is, there weren't that many people around.

Despite this, though, we were more careful about sneaking around. We went straight to the clothes shops rather than having a look around first so we could get what we need and not care if we happened to get caught after.

I struggled picking out a new outfit as my current one is just so comfortable and I can be quite picky with what I wear. I don't like clothes that are too tight as it can feel like I'm suffrocating but I don't like clothes that are too oversized either as then they can get in the way and the baggieness can get uncomfortable.

But I did end up choosing an outfit on the more oversized end of the clothing spectrum as I don't want to feel anymore suffocated when I'm wearing a binder already...

Yes, I wear a binder. It's one of the only things that can make me feel better about my chest.

As for my gender identity, I'm not entirely sure at the moment. I do feel some kind of connection to originally being female, but it's just not as strong as it is for most other girls.

I've come across the term 'demigirl' online as some of my followers have opened up about identifying as such, and I think it fits, but then again I can't be completely sure. I'm currently just testing out using that label, and it's working right now, but things may change.

All I know is for certain is that I like both she/her and they/them pronouns, and that certainly helps me feel at ease over the dread that comes with questioning your identity.

But, even though I do feel somewhat female, it's not enough for me to feel comfortable in what is considered "female" clothing. I did consider possibly wearing a skirt, but it just didn't feel right, and it wasn't just because I don't like flowing clothes.

And it made me feel worse when I saw how cute and happy Liko looked in her new navy dungaree dress. The way she danced and twirled in it with delight made me want to do the same, but I just can't bring myself to do it. There's just something holding me back...

But, what does it matter anyway? At least she's happy, as her happiness is the only thing that really matters to me.

And, in a way, I do prefer not looking all too feminine anyway. If I did, most people would assume I'm some average straight girl and would think I'm weird for possibly thinking about using they/them alongside she/her. I like looking androgynous and edgy.

It helps that it makes Liko think I'm cool too, even though I don't feel it.

"That looks so good on you, Dot!" The black haired girl complimented me as I came out of the changing rooms in a purple hoodie and baggie black trousers.

"Thanks, but you look even better!" I replied and took her hands before spinning her around in the air, her blue dungaree dress flapping around.

We did this until we both noticed Roy glaring at us from a distance and I then put my best friend down to do the same back.

"What?" I questioned in an annoyed tone of voice.

"Nothing, it's just, if we're done here, I think I'll head back to the airship," He replied.

He really dies like riling me up, huh? Well, unfortunately, when I get a hate comment or any kind of response like that, I don't hold back.

"Is it really so bad to hang out with us?!" I asked.

Liko then put a hand over my mouth and smiled awkwardly.

"It's fine! M-me and Dot were th-thinking about looking around though, so we'll see you later!" She stammered.

"Okay," The pink haired boy nodded and put his hand into the pockets of his new red letterman jacket before walking up to counter to pay for it, and theb walking out of the shop.

Roy is such a bummer. I wish he would stay and spend some quality time with us, but I am also glad that he keeps leaving us because that way he doesn't drag our emotions down.

He brings out the worst in both me and Liko, so it's better off that maybe he doesn't hang out with us as much. But still, at least she can occasionally bring out a good side of him...

"Are you sure we should really keep on looking around when you're kind of... a ticking time bomb?" I questioned after we had payed for our new clothes and were walking out of the shop.

"Yeah!" Liko answered, "I know I've already seen a lot of Levincia because I got chased around here when everyone was looking for me after I went missing, but I want to see everything properly this time!"

"If you think you'll be okay with that, then sure!" I replied.

"Where should we start first?" She asked.

"Well, before we do any if this, there is somewhere I would like to take you first..." I answered, a smile spreading across my face as I remembered one of the reasons I wanted to come here in the first place.

It's time for Liko to meet my other friend...

Chapter Text

Dot's POV:

I held Liko's hand as we both walked together to the building inside knew my friend would be in. I had secretly wanted to hold her hand without planning to say anything, but after I noticed she kept on losing her balance, I jumped at the opportunity to support her.

She actually tried to politely decline, but I knew she would fall otherwise, so I helped regardless. Besides, her hands are too smooth and warm not to be held.

I know my rough and sweaty hands probably weren't the nicest to interlock with, but she seemed to appreciate the gesture.

I don't know why I've suddenly become like this. I wouldn't usually run miles to bring people to safety like I did for her the other day or get make this much physical contact or eye contact with anyone, but it's so easy with her.

There's just something about her, and I can't quite pinpoint it as of right now. I've got a hunch, but that hunch isn't a topic that I would want to approach her with, as there is the possibility of our friendship destroying if she doesn't feel the same way.

And I don't want that to happen. I want to be there for her without her having to feel uncomfortable around me in any way.

I have to be there for her, because who else will?...

Anyway, we arrived outside the building and Liko looked hesitent to go inside. She looked up at it with a sense of fear, and that made me worry.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"Y-yeah..." She mumbled, "It's just, a-are we allowed in there?"

"Yeah, of course we are!" I responded, "Why wouldn't we be?"

"I don't know, it just looks like a very important business building, and I wouldn't want to intrude..." She explained.

"I can assure you in know way is it an 'important business building', now come on!" I reassured her.

I squeezed at her hand before tugging at it. I then pulled her through the door and inside.

The black haired girl scanned around the room, but she still looked visibly anxious. I could then understand why because the first floor looked like the reception to an office building. But, even so, I continued to lead her into the lift and then upwards to our destination.

Her hands were beginning to sweat too, and tremble, so I turned to look at her. I smiled as stroked her hand with my other.

"It will be okay," I whispered.

Then, the doors of the lift opened, and we stepped through. Liko had her eyes scrunched shut originally, but then she opened then, and they went wide.

Standing a far distance away, but not too far away that we couldn't see her, stood Iono. Well, not really stood as she was bouncing around as she waved goodbye to her audience just as she was wrapping up a stream, but you get what I mean.

Once she was done, she then looked our way. I saw her eyes light up when she saw me and her and Bellibolt came running our way.

I then looked over at Liko, and her face was red. It kind of looked like she was going to pass out-

"Heya Dot!" Iono greeted, "Fancy seeing you here?!"

"Hi Iono, it's great to see you too!" I replied.

She then looked over at Liko and began to study her. After about a minute, I could almost see a switch flick in her brain and a light bulb come to life above her head when she realised.

"No way! Are you Sprigatito Love?" The pink and blue haired influencer beamed.

"Y-yeah, th-that's me!" The black haired girl answered.

"I can't believe it!" Iono gushed, "It's so great to finally meet you in person! Would you like me to do my iconic greeting in person?"

Liko nodded her head hesitantly.

"Your eyeballs are mine, caught in my ele-" She was about to say, when she then came to a hault.

Despite having a firm grip on my hand, the girl stood next to me passed out. I lost my grip on hers as she fell to the floor, and me and Iono both looked down at her with pure shock.

"Is she okay?" The pink and blue haired influencer questioned with a look of concern on her face that I've never really seen on hers before.

"I'm sure she's fine, just a little overexcited about seeing you!" I tried to reassure her.

"Oh I can totally understand that!" Iono replied before tossing her hair, "I am a beauty after all!"

I giggled to myself before I went to pick up Liko. It didn't look like she would wake up straight away, so I carried her on my back to the Iono Zone set and sat her down there.

"We kind of need her awake soon seeing as I've got a new outfit organised for her..." The influencer grumbled.

"Wait, you do already?!" I exclaimed, quite suprised seeing as I only told her about this last night.

"Yeah, of course I do!" She responded, "I may be a busy girl but I like to get the job done as quickly as possible!"

Suddenly, Liko bolted upright from her unconsciousness with a look of distress on her face. She scanned around the room with sweat dripping from her face and we both looked at her with worry.

"What happened?! Where am I?!" She squeaked, not able to make eye contact with us.

"It's okay, you just fell unconscious for a few minutes!" I reassured her, "Take some deep breaths, it's okay!"

She looked me in the eyes and then did as I said. I also took deep breaths with her as I thought it would be easier if she had someone to watch also doing it with her. Iono even joined in too, before remembering what she needed to do.

"Anyway, I need to quickly get someone but I'll be right back!" She interrupted before running off without even hearing our responses, which isn't really like her as she has a guilty pleasure for refreshing comments over and over again on her videos.

"Where is she going?" Liko asked.

"She's just going to get an outfit for your new Terapagos form," I answered.

"Wait what?" The black haired girl questioned, beginning to panic again, "How does she know?"

"I may have told her... but just let me explain!" I replied.

I then slung my bag off my back and crouched down to zip it open. She then sat down beside me as I took out all of my doodle papers and showed them to her.

Each piece of paper had some kind of concept design for an outfit she could have when she in in her Terapagos form. I had a lot fun making up all of these designs on a whim of imagination and after I was finished, I had explained everything to Iono amd sent pictures across, hoping she could bring my creativity to life, seeing as she would probably have had someone make her own outfit for her.

"These look so cool..." Liko muttered to herself, looking over the drawing again and again.

"Thanks..." I mumbled, blushing from embarrassment as I scratched the back of my neck.

I'm not used to being praised for my hard work, but it feels different when it comes from her...

But, my friend still looked quite nervous about all of this.

"It's okay, it really is, Iono may look like a gossiper, and she kind of is, but she would never share a secret I've told her to keep," I informed softly.

"You mean it?" She questioned.

"Yes," I nodded with a smile.

Liko then smiled back, but the moment got interrupted when we heard fast pace footsteps coming from towards us.

"I'm back, and with a new friend!" Iono suddenly came running back, dragging another person behind her.

She then stopped and so did the person behind her. The pink and blue haired influencer then jumped out of the way to present the girl standing there.

That girl had pink, curly and long hair tied into a ponytail, with yellow at the tips of her curls. She also had pink eyes and was wearing a green crop top with a black star with a small yellow lightning bolt in the middle. She was wearing blue jeans, purple sneakers, and had a Pichu perched on her shoulder.

The pink haired girl smiled awkwardly as her gaze went from me to Liko a couple of times, but then she finally spoke.

"H-hi! M-my name is Elektra, and I'm a seamstress!" Elektra introduced herself, "I m-mostly work for Iono, and i'm the one who spent a week making her iconic oversized hoodie, but today, I've just finished making an outfit for you too!"

"Pichu pichu!" Her partner pokémon squeaked.

She then looked over at Liko and smiled. Liko then smiled back at her.

"It's nice to meet you, Elektra!" The black haired girl said.

"It's nice to meet you too!" The pink haired girl replied, reaching out her hand, "Now then, let me take you to see it!"

She took it, and the two then went off to the changing rooms. That just left me and Iono on the set.

"So, you really do have an IRL pal, huh?~" Iono hummed.

"Yeah, but don't say it like that!" I raised my voice, my face going red.

"But don't you think this friendship you have with Liko could become something more?~" The pink and blue haired influencer asked.

"We've not been friends for too long, I don't want to mess it up that quickly just because I probably like her more than she could possibly like me..." I muttered.

"So you do like her?~" She questioned.

"Just shush!" I replied, trying to cover her mouth with my finger, but then she tried to bite at it playfully with her shap teeth, so I pulled away laughing.

But, since she's teasing me about Liko, that must mean there's something going on with her and Elektra...

"Hey, what about you and Elektra?~" I hummed.

"Oh we're just good friends, nothing more!" Iono answered, turning away to look into the distance rather wistfully.

Although, she's probably lying as her legs are beginning to shake, and her smile doesn't feel as genuine as it usually does.

"Are you sure?" I questioned, growing a little concerned.

"Yeah, there's nothing more between us..." She mumbled while blushing a little, "Although, please do keep all of this a secret from her..."

I don't know if I can, seeing as I'm pretty good at just blurting out other people's secrets without thinking about how it will affect the person, but I can give it a go. I've learnt my lesson, so I can do this.

"As long as you keep my secret, or more so, secrets," I replied.

"Wait, you haven't told Liko you're-" Iono was about to ask.

But before she coukd finish her sentence, Liko and Elektra arrived back out of the changing rooms. Liko was in her Terapagos form, and Elektra was holding her hand as she brought her over.

My friend standing next to me then zipped her mouth shut before giving me a reassuring smile and a wink. I think I can trust her after all.

"Is Liko okay?" I asked.

"Yes, she's absolutely fine! I just wanted her to transform so I could find a way where she can wear this outfit whenever she takes on this form!" The pink haired girl explained.

And that's when I noticed that Liko as wearing one of the many outfits that I had designed for her. She was wearing the purple dress that I had drew with blue rings hovering around her neck, waist, wrists and ankles. She also was wearing purple boots with crystals similar to the crystal hair pin that replaced her original green hairpin.

She looked even more beautiful in this form in that outfit compared to the original. It makes more sense for Liko and Terapagos Liko, or whatever she chooses to call that form, to me separate and not linked together, so it really works for them to stand apart.

"Okay!" I finally nodded.

Then, Liko took a deep breath, and she turned back to her normal form. When that happened, the purple dress disappeared and she went back to wearing her usual outfit.

"It works!" Elektra pumped a fist in the air.

"That's incredible!" I ran to hug Liko and twirl her around in the air.

"Well done Elektra, your as amazing as always!" Iono went to congratulate her friend.

"Awww stop! You're making me blush!" Elektra squirmed, her face going red.

"Thank you so much for helping me, I really appreciate it!" Liko smiled at her.

"No problem, I'm always happy to help if you need it!" Elektra smiled back.

After that, we waved goodbye before leaving the building. We both held hands as we skipped down the street and towards the Brave Olivine.

But as we were moving along, suddenly, Liko came to a stop. I turned to look where she was looking, and we were now both watching as two older boys beat up a younger boy and his Sobble.

It was difficult to watch for me, but I noticed Liko was able to glare at them just fine. She began to breath at a fast pace and clench her fists, and I knew what was about to happen-

But then, she took deep breaths, and she began to calm down. I was quite suprised by this, and I didn't want to necessarily encourage her to do the wrong thing, but...

"You do know that now you've got a new outfit, you can kind of do whatever you want," I pointed out.

"Are you actually trying to encourage me to beat up those boys?~" Liko asked, with a surprisingly smug smile, as I thought she would look at me with concern.

"Well, not really, just saying!" I replied, my face going red because she looks cute when she makes that face.

"I don't have complete consciousness though, what if I hurt you again?" She tried to argue, the worry coming back to her.

"Maybe I deserve it..." I mumbled, turning to look away from her with what I think is shame.

I know the black haired girl didn't quite hear me, and it was obvious in the way that she didn't then sigh in sadness, but in a tired way.

"Fine..." She mumbled.

She then ran to a corner of a building to transform, and came flying back. Terapagos Liko approached the fight and before the older boys could even gasp, she began to beat them up.

It didn't feel as good to watch the little boy get the justice he deserved as I would have liked to have thought it would feel, but at least he and his Sobble were able to escape.

But then, I looked out of the corner of my eye and noticed someone standing eerily close to me. They had while and black hair, and was dressed quite fancy for someone who looked to be just a few years older than me.

They glared at me with their purple eyes, and I knew they were up to no good. They looked like how I had overheard Liko describe to someone else on the airship at one point, before we properly met...

And this was all starting to give me the creeps.

We need to get out of here, and quickly...