My heart was heavy as I finished packing up my things, giving the hotel room one last sweep to make sure that I hadn’t missed anything.

  I wasn’t sad to be leaving Veilstone City; just the opposite, really.

  But I was wondering if I should stay longer with Ted, Lucas, and Kevin.

  Rowan had been understanding of my decision, and even supportive. He completely understood my feelings, but had made one important note.

  If I stopped doing the Gym Challenges, it wasn’t likely that my sponsorship through his lab would continue.

  “It’s not that you haven’t done enough.” He’d said. “Arceus knows you have. But funds for Lab Trainers going on their Journey rely on just that: going on a Journey. And if you stop… you’ll still have a place at the lab if you want it, but it would be as a regular assistant; not a Lab Trainer. It’s a subtle distinction, but an important one.”

  There would be a number of benefits that I would lose if I didn’t continue my Journey. Pokémon Centers themselves would still offer their services for free, but I would have to pay if I wanted to sleep in one of their rooms. My monthly stipend - which was relatively small but still helped pay for things like food and training supplies, would disappear.

  I wasn’t too terribly worried about money, however. After all, I’d made quite a bit of money having turned in information on Archie and Maxie, and I still had a good amount left. Even without the income from the lab, it would still be enough to keep me comfortable for a little while at least.

  Despite that, I still mentally added “contact a financial planner” to my list.

  Better to be safe than sorry.

  There were a number of reasons why I shouldn’t stop on my Journey. Money, services, travelling companions…

  I shook my head.

  Everything was packed, and my companions were probably already waiting for me. This would be the last leg of the journey that we would be travelling together for.

  We would travel west on Route 215 until we hit Solaceon Town, at which point they would turn south and head towards Hearthome City.

  However, once I reached Solaceon Town, I would spend some time checking out the sights, maybe explore the ruins a little bit, and then once that was done, I would turn north and head up to Celestic Town.

  I stared at the door, backpack in hand, and licked my lips nervously.

  There was one major problem with my plan so far, and I hadn’t really found a way to address it.

  I hadn’t told my companions my plan yet.

  I had meant to, once I ended the phone call with Rowan and returned to the restaurant, but I hadn’t wanted to ruin the celebration by talking about how I was going to leave soon.

  /^\

  Several days later, as we were getting closer and closer to Solaceon Town, I still hadn’t told my friends.

  “Alina, for the last time.” Ted said, waving a bowl of stew in front of my face. “If you’re feeling sick, just let us know. If you can’t keep travelling, we can just take a short break so you feel better.”

  “Although it would be better if you could wait to collapse once we get to Solaceon Town.” Kevin mumbled from around a mouthful of stew.

  “It’s not that it’s…”

  I sighed, annoyed with not just the situation, but also myself.

  I was an adult, I should be able to handle awkward conversations.

  God knows I’ve handled worse.

  I took the stew, and set it on the ground next to where I was sitting on a log. In its place, I reached down and picked up Venus, who squawked irritably before settling down as I placed her in my lap for comfort.

  Then I had to reach over, and pull Kōjin off of the bowl of stew before he started eating it all.

  “Okay.” I said, carefully petting Venus’ fur. “There is something I’ve been meaning to tell you all. I don’t think I’m going to be continuing with you all past Solaceon Town.”

  For a long moment, the only sound was the campfire crackling and popping.

  “I don’t get it.” Lucas said. “What do you mean? Are we changing our plans and not going to Hearthome City?”

  “No, I mean, you will all be going down that way I’m sure. But I won’t be.”

  Kevin and Lucas shared a confused look, while Ted nodded seriously.

  “I understand.” He said.

  “Well I don’t!” Lucas cut in. “What are you saying? That you’re giving up? What about going to the Conference? The Championships?"

  “I’m not giving up.” I said. “I just don’t think being a full-time, professional Pokémon Trainer is the right thing for me to do. And I’m going to be honest - I think at this point, I’m holding you all back.”

  Lucas blinked, as if that had never occurred to him.

  “Think about it. I’m the only one of the group with fewer Badges than the rest. Almost every single Gym Battle is a struggle for me.”

  “That’s not true!”

  “Maybe not depending on the Gym, but as things get more advanced they definitely will be harder and harder. I’m struggling to keep up with you all.”

  Ted nodded. “There’s no shame in knowing your limits.”

  Kevin slammed his bowl on the ground, sending droplets of stew everywhere.

  “Aren’t you just being hypocritical though?” He said, tears in the corners of his eyes. “I mean, you told me not to give up. Aren’t you just giving up on being a Trainer?”

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  I turned to face him. “I told you not to give up because you wanted to be a Trainer. That’s what you want to do with your life, right?”

  He nodded jerkily.

  “Well, if I’m being honest, which I usually try to be… I don’t know if being a Pokémon Trainer is the life I really want to live. A professional, that is. I’m not tired of travelling, but I am tired of never getting to actually explore the places we visit. I feel like there’s so much to do, so much to see, but I’m not actually getting to experience any of it.

  “I’m not giving up on being a Trainer - it was just never my goal to begin with. This entire thing is a second chance at life for me, and I want to experience as much as I can. I’ve done what I needed to do to accomplish that, now it’s time for me to actually go and see the world.”

  Kevin opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

  I leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder. “This isn’t the dark ages. We still have phones and video calls. We can still chat, and when you make it to the Conference and the Championships… well I’ll come and watch you all in the stands. But right now? I just need to do my own thing.”

  I felt his shoulders slump, and the fight go out of him.

  “Promise?” He said quietly.

  Smiling softly, I nodded. “Promise.”

  He sniffled, and I held my arms out for a hug. Kevin hesitated, but then stood up and walked over to wrap his arms around me tightly. After a second, I felt another body slam into my back - Lucas had joined in the hug, and I could feel the air leave my lungs as they both squeezed.

  Venus yowled again, hopping off of my lap as Ted joined in the hug.

  After a couple seconds I started tapping them on their backs.

  “I need to breathe!”

  /^\

  Solaceon Town was, in a word, sleepy.

  That’s not to say it wasn’t busy - it very much was. But somehow even all of the hustle and bustle of the town managed to seem calm in comparison to some of the other towns I’d come across in my travels so far.

  The biggest and most obvious part of the town were the large swaths of land that had been fenced off, and where Pokémon of all different species frolicked.

  After all, while there was a single Daycare Center in the games, Solaceon Town in real life had carved a niche for being a haven for Pokémon Breeders in Sinnoh. Not to say there weren’t Pokémon Breeders all across the region, but for one reason or another, most of them had congregated here in Solaceon Town.

  On a slightly more depressing note, the top of the Lost Tower could be seen while in town, serving as a subtle but constant reminder that even Pokémon couldn’t live forever.

  “Well.” Ted said as we were all taking a break at a coffee shop in town. “I suppose we’re only going to be here for the day, so if there’s anything you all need to get done, I recommend taking care of it sooner rather than later.”

  The rest of my companions would be leaving Solaceon Town by the end of the day, but I’d already reached out to a hotel and scheduled a time to check in this afternoon. It was weird to think about, having spent most of my time with Ted, Lucas, and now Kevin, but soon enough it would just be me and my Pokémon.

  Lucas frowned into his cup of hot cocoa, and Kevin stared off into the middle distance. Neither of them were happy with the fact that I was going to be staying behind, but at least they had stopped trying to get me to change my mind.

  “I don’t think so?” Kevin said after a moment’s thought. “Nothing that really stands out to me.”

  “Same.” Lucas grumbled.

  Ted hesitated, then nodded. “Okay, well I just have a little bit of business with a Breeder, but then I should be good to go.”

  Back in Snowpoint City, Ted had met with a Swinub breeder, and apparently had been taken with the idea of getting one of the mammoth-like Pokémon to join his team.

  He had mentioned something about it being a good fit for his team, but I had my personal suspicions that he just liked the idea of having a little furball that he could play with. The fact that Swinub didn’t appear naturally in Hoenn was also probably a factor as well - he did have a tendency to be drawn to rarer Pokémon, maybe a consequence of his field of study.

  “I wouldn’t mind tagging along for that.” I said. “If that would be okay. It would be interesting to see how a Pokémon Breeder does their job.”

  Ted considered, checked his watch, and shrugged. “Sounds good to me. The meeting is in thirty minutes or so; want to head over now and see if we can’t have a little fun with the other Pokémon first?”

  Kevin and Lucas both perked up, and I tried to hide my smirk at their enthusiasm by taking a sip of my coffee.

  “Sounds good to me.”

  /^\

  “So, how exactly does this work?” I asked Ted while Kevin and Lucas rolled around on the ground, laughing while they were being swarmed by hordes of tiny Pokémon.

  Ted shrugged. “I meet the Breeder and the Pokémon they think will be the best fit for me. Then I’ll spend some time with the Swinub, one-on-one, and see if we’d be compatible as a team. If we are, I pay the Breeder, and officially catch the Swinub in a Poké Ball.”

  “That’s it?”

  “That’s it. Honestly it’s a lot more stress for the Breeder than it is for me. They’re the ones who have to be certified by the Pokémon League, who have to have random inspections to make sure they’re not mistreating their Pokémon, and all the rest.”

  “That sounds like a lot.”

  A new voice chuckled, and we turned to see a vaguely familiar middle-aged man step forward - the Swinub Breeder.

  “It is a lot.”

  Ted smiled, and stepped forwards to shake his hand. “Alina, this is Ted. Ted, this is Alina.”

  I blinked, and looked between the two men.

  “You mean you’re both named Ted?”

  They chuckled, and Swinub-Ted nodded. “Funny how things work out, isn’t it?”

  “Well, if it’s such a hassle to deal with all of that stuff, why do you keep being a Breeder?” I asked.

  “That’s a good question. The first thing is that I love Pokémon. Swinub and their line especially, and I want to help other people see the value in them.”

  “And the other?”

  “Money.” Swinub-Ted said, and I blinked dumbly as he laughed. “Oh don’t get me wrong, I love Swinub, but if it wasn’t profitable I wouldn’t have gotten into the Breeding business. I would have just settled down with my Mamoswine, and called it a good life.”

  That… was fair, I supposed. As long as the Pokémon were being treated well, and it seemed like the Pokémon League were being very careful with their Breeders, I couldn’t fault the man for trying to make a living.

  “How much does a Swinub cost, if you don’t mind me asking.”

  He shrugged. “Oh, it depends. Male or Female? How old? Any specific heritage to determine if they have affinities for certain moves or not? But in general…”

  I blinked, and rubbed my ear. “I’m sorry, could you say that again?”

  Swinub-Ted repeated the number, and I nodded numbly. “Gotcha. That’s what I thought you said.”

  He cackled, and Ted had the resigned look of a man whose wallet was going to be a little thin for a while.

  “Now! Let’s meet your Swinub, shall we?”

  /^\

  “I know what I said, but I’m not really sure I understand your reasoning.” Ted said, as my three soon to be former traveling companions finished putting their backpacks on. “This just feels a little… abrupt?”

  The business in Solaceon Town was done for them, and it was time for us to part ways.

  “You’re right, it is a little abrupt. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.”

  “No?”

  There was a sad little smile on my face.

  “No. Spending a lot of time crying and saying goodbye isn’t my style.”

  I wiped a tear away from my eye.

  “After all, the next time we see each other, it would be embarrassing; wouldn’t it?”

  Ted started, then smiled. “Yeah, I guess it would be.”

  Turning to the other young men, he gave them a nod. “Ready?”

  They looked sad, but resigned. Our Pokémon were mingling together, saying their goodbyes. Ted’s as-of-yet-unnamed Swinub and Jira were confused, neither having had the chance to get to know the other Pokémon all that well, but the others had been through a lot together.

  They both nodded. “We’re ready.” Kevin said quietly.

  Our Pokémon drifted apart.

  “Well, be safe!” I said. “I’ll see you all at the Conference. Keep in touch, and don’t be strangers.”

  “You too.” Ted said, and Lucas nodded quietly.

  Then, awkwardly, they turned and started to walk away, their Pokémon following them into the distance.

  I waited there for a long moment, but none of them looked back.

  “Alright.” I breathed once they had gone out of sight, and looked down at my Pokémon.

  “Let's go and explore a little bit, shall we?”