“Before we continue, I need to apologise to you.” Joyce began, her words causing a frown on my face. That didn’t sound promising. Instead of answering, I simply waited, letting her move at her pace, both in the conversation and on the path she was taking, away from the large, grey-stone building the League occupied. Somehow, even without Prince Charming putting out the heat, I wasn’t as cold as before, despite the snow we were walking on.

“What I did would normally be unthinkable but at the same time, I believed, and still believe, that I did the right thing.” she paused, her whole demeanour making me nervous, “Earlier, when Lady Bee took the readings from your body and I checked your Prince Charming, your own P-values and the readings of your partner were incredible. Above the level of an Elite, in a Realm where I would wonder if you are contending to be a Champion. But your age makes that nigh impossible.” she explained, the frown on my face deepening, as I had heard those things before, when eavesdropping, but I had no idea what they actually meant.

“Now, for my transgression. Such information is private and one of the core tenets of my profession is to respect the patient's privacy. I breached yours and told Cynthia and Lucian about those values, due to their relevance for their own investigation into the event that brought you here. For that, I can only ask for your forgiveness and hope that you won’t judge my profession by the actions of myself, as an individual.” she paused, before turning to me and giving a deep bow, holding her head down. Behind her, Lady Bee looked on, her focus on Joyce.

Without context, I could not make an informed decision. On one hand, I felt violated, for sharing something apparently private and important, on the other hand, I had no idea why it was important or anything, really.

“I see.” I replied, considering my options and decided to put my hopes on Joyce, her apology in many ways an act of grace and a desire to do the right thing.

“And I’ve known that you shared those findings, thanks to your Partner. After you left earlier, when you had just taken those readings, she prodded me to follow her and guided me some distance through the hallways, before doing something that allowed us to listen in to part of that very conversation.” I explained, confessing my own wrongdoing in the process.

Contrary to my expectation, she simply started to laugh.

“Oh, Lady Bee, only you…” she laughed, before turning to her partner and pulling the marshmallow into a hug, holding her for a moment.

“She is one of a kind.” she shook her head, before looking back to me and I continued to talk.

“However, I have no idea what those terms actually mean and certainly not why they are important. Could you please explain?” I asked, getting a nod in response, before she fell silent for a moment, continuing to walk, with me following along.

“Where to start…” she muttered, pausing for a moment, “I guess I’ll have to start at the beginning and with a question. How much do you know about Pokémon?” she asked and it was my turn to pause. What did I truly know, other than those impossible memories, that faded more and more into the back of my mind?

When I didn’t answer for a minute, she continued to talk.

“They are living beings, just like you and me, however they are fundamentally different. Not just in the way their bodies are made up, but on an even more fundamental level. You and I are more similar to the rocks on the ground, than we are to Pokémon.” she explained and I listened, trying to make sense of her words.

“If Lucian was here, he could explain the details and give you a headache in the process, but the long and short of it is, the energy that is condensed into the matter they are composed of, is fundamentally different. It is the fundamental difference and from that difference, everything else follows.” she paused, as if that explained everything. Maybe it did, and I simply didn’t understand.

“That’s why they can be stored in Pokéballs, it is how their attacks work and why their diet is what it is. It has something to do with quantum-spins and -states but really, I don’t know the details, I only know what works, not why it works.” she continued, leaving me with even more questions, even if I decided, those questions could wait, maybe forever.

“Now, that energy of Pokémon, named after Professor Poké, who essentially founded the modern study of Pokémon and pioneered a lot of the fundamental research that our society rests on, is called P-Energy, with a capital P. It can also accumulate in minerals and due to a variety of processes, be accumulated in fruits, especially berries, but that’s a topic for another time. Some of what I told you earlier, about Pokémon-care, hinges on that accumulation. But it’s not what’s important right now.” she caught herself, before going into too much detail regarding berries. I remembered that she had told me about special properties of some of them, which likely was due to that accumulation.

“No, the important thing is this: Close contact, on a physical and spiritual level, with Pokémon, causes humans to accumulate a derivative form of that energy, called p-Energy, with a lower-case p. They are named the same, because they essentially are, only one in the wild, the other within humans.”

“Oooohkay.” I muttered, slowly catching up, “And the p-Value expresses what? That I have a lot or that I can accumulate a lot? And why is that energy important?” She gave me a pleased smile and an approving nod.

“The p-Value represents the amount of p-energy in your body. And it’s important for multiple reasons. p-Energy has a variety of documented effects within the body, most of them reinforcing in nature, making the body more durable, less prone to injury but also old age. Someone like Cynthia will look like she’s in her mid-thirties even if her real age is closer to that of Renata. And there are apocryphal reports of zombie-people, who can literally be blown away by explosions and simply get up and walk away. After getting blasted off for hundreds, maybe thousands of metres, or who can take the Fireblast of a Charizard to the face, without anything but cosmetic damage.” she continued and stopped, turning around to me, who had stopped on the path, staring at her, my mouth gaping open like a fish out of water.

“Some of those tales are almost certainly exaggerated and I wouldn’t try to get hurt, to test things out, the effects aren’t the same for everyone. Not even close.” she warned me, a grin on her face. Shaking my head, I pushed away the whole insanity, putting it into the box I had been shoving every impossibility in, maybe I could burn the whole thing later. Taking a few, deep breaths, I pushed on.

“And Prince Charming? Is he alright?” I asked, simply to change the topic.

“The readings I took of him are different, but just as impressive in their own way. While his strength-level is nothing to write home about, his potential is incredible, especially if you are training him.`` Her words sent a shiver down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold wind blowing around us. Almost instinctively, I reached out, grabbing my partner’s hand.

“What do you mean, If?!” I demanded, warmth blooming next to me, as Charm reacted to my anger. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see Lady Bee move, but I didn’t care. Nobody could take my partner!

“Just that. We need to make sure that you are not abusing him and that you can handle him.” she answered, looking me into the eye and I saw compassion there, even as I ground my teeth in anger.

“Come, let us continue.” She invited me, her voice serene. Without a target for my anger, I felt myself calm down somewhat, to the point that I could unclench my jaw and follow her. Not that I let go of Prince Charming’s hand or try to continue our conversation. Instead, I tried to consider her words and the implications of what she had told me. After a minute of silent walking, she turned, stepping through a line of snow-covered hedges and I followed, only to stop in my tracks.

We were standing on a small terrace built into the steep mountain-side, allowing us to look down into the lands below. The sea of green and white, with the pure, azure-blue sky above was breathtakingly beautiful. Somewhere, far in the distance, I could see some regular forms that I thought were houses, but it was too far to make out any details.

Looking up, into the sea of azure, with a few, small clouds drifting through the endless sky, I noticed a few beings in the distance, flying through the sky. I couldn’t make out what they were, but some of them sent shivers down my spine, despite the distance.

“We need to protect the harmony between Humans and Pokémon. And hopefully, you’ll join us in that effort.” Joyce told me, waving at the world before us with her hand.