The feeling of forgetting something stayed with me like an itch I couldn’t scratch up until we left Solaceon Town.

  Once we hit the open road, however, heading north towards Celestic Town, that constant nagging feeling finally eased, and the world seemed just that much brighter and more vibrant.

  The trip itself was quieter than what I’d been used to, and it reminded me a lot of the early days of my Journey, back when it was just Venus and I.

  “It’s hard to believe that was only a few months ago.” I said to Venus as we were stopped along the roadside to take lunch.

  She looked up at me from her meal with a questioning look.

  “When we first started out.” I said, looking up into the sky. “I mean, I was barely healed after… well. You know.”

  Venus sneezed, flicked her ears at me, then went back to eating.

  “Yeah I know.”

  Jira on the other hand, seemed more interested, and waddled over, Berry still clutched in a stubby hand.

  “Oh?” I asked. “You want to know more?”

  She leaned her head back and let out a tiny roar of agreement, then tried to clamber into my lap.

  “Oof.”

  Most of the air was pushed out of my lungs as she settled into my lap.

  “You’ve grown.” I squeaked. “Eating all of that dirt has really paid off, I guess.”

  The more I thought about it, her roar had been less tinny and high pitched than it had been when she had just been born.

  It had only been a couple weeks, but already she was really starting to grow. Soon I wouldn’t even be able to pick her up, and we’d have to go over how to properly interact with the world around her.

  She was small and dense now, but if she continued growing, and eventually evolved into a Tyranitar, well. She wouldn’t be so small, and if Jira didn’t learn the proper amount of caution in dealing with fragile objects like people…

  I sighed, and brushed some dirt off of the flexible scales of her skin.

  “So, it all started a while ago. There I was minding my own business, when all of a sudden…”

  The tale took a little bit to finish, and by the time I was done Jira had finished her Berry and a small pile of dirt, and was now snoring peacefully.

  With a small, contented smile I recalled her back into her Poké Ball, and looked to the rest of my party.

  “How are we all feeling? Does anybody want to go back in? Or would you rather get some exercise?”

  Kōjin’s ears perked up, and his tail started wagging eagerly.

  I laughed. “Okay, well I know how you feel about it. Zetian?”

  The Vespiquen considered for a long moment, then buzzed contentedly. A couple of her bees emerged from her hive, and started exploring the nearby flowers.

  “Understood. Venus?”

  Venus looked up at the sky and sniffed, eyeing the sun disdainfully. Still, she got to her feet and stretched, extending one long leg after the other.

  “Big stretch!” I said with a grin. “Alright then, let’s get going! If you all want to go back to your Balls, just let me know.”

  I stood up and did some stretches myself, before shrugging my pack onto my shoulders again.

  After one last check to make sure we didn’t leave any litter or trash behind, we got started on our way again.

  Soon enough we fell into a rhythm. Venus would walk quietly by my side, just casually enjoying the day. Zetian, on the other hand, would often fall behind as she stopped to pick up her bees, or smell a particularly good looking flower. Once that was done, she would zip back to my side, until the whole process repeated itself.

  Kōjin, on the other hand, was working out his energy in the usual way dogs did.

  He would run ahead on the path, always making sure to stay in sight, then turn, and run all the way back to me.

  Once he had done that a few times, burning a good chunk of his energy, he started taking the walk a bit more slowly. His nose was to the ground, and he was constantly going back and forth, smelling all of the different scents from Pokémon and people walking back and forth on the trail.

  In the background, Starly’s were singing in the trees while Bug-types let out their quiet droning calls. A river burbled nearby, and the soft susurration was a pleasant backdrop to our passage.

  The sun was warm on my skin, but a gentle breeze kept it from being overwhelming.

  All-in-all, it was a perfect day to travel.

  There was a little bit of regret that Lucas, Ted, and Kevin couldn’t be here to also enjoy the day, but I knew they were likely having fun as well. Besides, there was a certain pleasure in enjoying the peace and quiet, with only my Pokémon as company.

  I took a deep breath of the clean air, and let it out slowly.

  It was a good day to start the next chapter in my life.

  /^\

  I stared gloomily out at the rain as it poured down around my small little campsite.

  “We’re not even half-way to Celestic Town!” I moaned, falling backwards onto my sleeping bag.

  Kōjin and Zetian were both resting in their Poké Balls, having decided that the rainy weather wasn’t for them. Kōjin for obvious reasons, didn’t like getting wet, and I had a sneaking suspicion that Zetian still had bad memories from when we first met.

  It had been a storm much like this one where I’d met her, and I was hoping that another tree with a Combee nest wouldn’t collapse this time.

  Jira was a different story. She wasn’t kicking around in the mud like I had feared, but instead was standing out in the small clearing where we had set up camp, and was looking up at the sky with her eyes closed, simply feeling the rain on her scales.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  I was a little worried about her, but she seemed to be enjoying the experience, so I was content to let her be for the moment.

  Venus was curled up in a tight ball next to me, legs twitching as she dreamt. Her gold rings glowed faintly with each breath in, before dimming with each exhale.

  Lightning lanced down out of the dark sky, illuminating the rainclouds for just a second, and I felt my breath catch.

  For the briefest second, there had been a shape in the clouds.

  Long, impossibly long, glowing with amber energy that traced a primeval script of circles and lines as the shape danced among the rain and lightning.

  I rose halfway to my feet, eyes desperately searching for the emerald form that had been lit up for the briefest second.

  But the lightning had already faded, the sky returning to its slate-grey dreariness.

  A peal of thunder rolled by, causing Venus to twitch, red eyes fluttering open for the briefest second to make sure all was well, before returning to sleep.

  Jira opened her mouth and roared in time with the thunder, and for a heartbeat I could have sworn that her roar was echoed by a far deeper voice, high in the sky, singing with the jubilation of being alive and the master of all it could see.

  My hair stood on end as the sounds faded away to be replaced with the constant pattering of rain on the roof of the tent.

  I had just felt something… ancient. More than ancient. I felt small, looking up at the universe and realizing exactly how little space I took up.

  It should have felt terrifying, realizing I was less than a speck of dust on the cosmic stage, but I could only feel a sense of awe and beauty,

  And the deepest sense of gratitude, for without a miracle, I never would have been able to see these sights and live my life.

  When I finally went to sleep, the rain still pouring down around us, Venus curled into my chest, and Jira a warm rock to my back, I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

  /^\

  The next day or two of walking was slightly miserable, having to trek through the mud that had been left by the storm, but soon enough we had cleared the worst of it.

  I didn’t even realize I had stumbled into Celestic Town until I was almost in the center of the town.

  There were a lot of different kinds of cities I’d come across since coming to Sinnoh. The industrial grandeur of Oreburgh, the cosmopolitan elegance of Jubilife, the muted silence of Snowpoint, but none quite managed to capture the timelessness of Celestic Town.

  Although if I was being honest, calling it a “town” was being awfully generous.

  I vaguely remembered that in the anime, Celestic Town was more of an actual city, with buildings, a Contest Hall, and much more.

  Here, however, it was much more similar to the version seen in the games.

  The entire town was situated in a large clearing, with a sunken depression filling the center. A few scattered houses were dotted across the circumference of the clearing, none more than a story tall.

  In the center of the clearing, in the middle of the depression, there was a small shrine, lovingly tended to.

  And that was it.

  Celestic Town really was barely a town.

  Calling it a hamlet would have been more appropriate.

  There were a few people visible, all looking to be past retirement age, tending to the gardens in-and-around their homes with their Pokémon, most of whom looked rather old as well.

  A Marill with rather muted colors and wrinkled skin helped one person water their garden, while a Roserade with yellowing flowers tended to a patch of daisies.

  An aging Ponyta, its fiery mane looking more like candle flames than a bonfire, looked up at me and whinnied, earning a gentle pat on its side from its owner.

  This isn’t so much a town as it is a retirement center. I thought, coming to a stop near the edge of the depression.

  All of the houses were of a much older architectural style than what I’d seen before, and judging by the mismatched weathering on some of the wooden boards and beams, they had likely been here for a long, long time, with pieces being replaced when the old ones wore out.

  “Hello there!” A leathery voice said, and I turned to see an older man carefully shuffling forwards with the help of his cane. “Welcome to Celestic Town, how can I help you?”

  I smiled and bowed. “Hello, my name is Alina, I’m a Lab Trai- I’m just a traveller. I’ve heard good things about Celestic Town, and I wanted to come and see if the rumors were true.”

  “Oh hoh!” The corners of his eyes wrinkled in a smile as he stroked his grey beard. “Well, that’s much appreciated. I must say, I’m interested in hearing what ‘good things’ you have heard of.”

  “It’s a long list.” I said with a polite smile. “But mostly I’ve heard that you have a nice, peaceful community with a lot of history.”

  “Well, that much is true.” He said. “But I am being rude. Please, let me introduce myself. You may call me Volo.”

  Ice water poured through my veins.

  “Volo.” I said, mind racing. “That’s an interesting name. I like it though.”

  “Why thank you.”

  This couldn’t be the same Volo, could it? Not Volo Volo?

  There were some long-lived people in the Pokémon World, like AZ, but that wasn’t natural…

  Surely it couldn’t be the same person - right?

  “Is it a family name?”

  “Family?” The man scrunched up his face in thought.

  He didn’t look like Volo, but it had been a couple hundred years. A change of clothes, some more wrinkles, if he grew a beard…

  “I suppose so. My family does have a rather long tradition in these parts. What an interesting question, I must say.”

  “I’m just interested in, uh, genealogy.” I said, trying to come up with a reasonable excuse.

  At that, however, the old man’s eyes lit up.

  “Geneaology you say! Well! I’ll be. I must admit, I have more than a passing interest in that myself!”

  My heart sank even further.

  “I will say, I do have some tea at my house. Would you care for a drink? Perhaps we can discuss it-”

  “Volo!” Another man’s voice cracked across the conversation. “What do you think you're doing!”

  We both turned to see an old man stomp over to us, his hand resting on the back of the same Ponyta I’d seen earlier for support.

  “Are you asking a woman who can’t be more than a quarter of your age into your house for tea!? What would your husband think?”

  Volo rolled his eyes. “I’m sure he would understand, considering that we’ve been together for sixty years now and never once have I chased after a younger man - let alone woman.”

  “Still! The, the, the impropriety!”

  I looked between them, increasingly uncomfortable with the conversation.

  “I’m sorry.” I said slowly. “I didn’t mean to cause any trouble. Thank you for the offer, but perhaps I best be going…”

  “Nonsense!” Volo said, and turned to the other man. “Hiro, why must you always seek to cause drama!”

  “Because it’s fun!” The man, Hiro, cackled.

  Then he leaned over, and placed a kiss on Volo’s cheek.

  “You should see the look on your face!” He said, mirth bubbling out of him like a fountain.

  Volo swatted gently at the man’s shoulder.

  “My apologies Alina for this old coot. I would like to introduce you to Hiro, my husband. Hiro, this is Alina, she’s a travelling-”

  “Yes, yes, I heard your conversation earlier. I’m not so old that I’ve gone deaf you know!”

  “Except when you need to be reminded about doing the dishes.”

  “Hm? I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you for a second there. You know how these old ears are…”

  Volo let out a long suffering sigh.

  “Please excuse him. I really would like to talk to you over some tea. Perhaps my dear husband could join us?”

  Hiro thought for a long moment, before nodding.

  “Oh, I suppose some tea couldn’t hurt. We have that lovely barley tea in the ice box.”

  “Iced barley tea? At this time of year?”

  “It’s mid-day! If you wanted to put a pot on, we’d all broil alive!”

  The two turned to me at the same time, intense expressions on their faces.

  “Well? What will it be?” Volo asked.

  “Iced?” Hiro said. “Or hot?”

  I smiled and felt like I was on a rapidly disappearing iceberg, and my control of the situation was rapidly slipping out of my grasp.

  “...Either is fine?”

  Sees screenshots from Pokemon Legends ZA about Volo's outfit in Kalos.