3:01 p.m. August 15th, Saturday, 106 PH (Post Hoopa Event). Day 67.

Events: Rhea won another Silver-tier Encrusted Badge after a tough battle! Now, our girls are on their way to getting their four Encrusted Badges for the League. Onward! Our girl started her journey on the 9th of June, and the end of registration for the Winter Indigo Cup is December 5th (111 days away).

Colorful lights faded away as Koga teleported her, and Rhea’s tired eyes lifted to see a waiting room, where much of her family waited, yet only her family was here. A little surprised not to see her teammates, it suddenly struck her that she hadn’t even looked to see if Amira, Lori, Jason, or anyone else was cheering her on during the battle.

She’d been so focused on the match at hand and her mother’s condition that it was like she was wearing blinders once she saw her grandparents and brother no longer in their seats. Thinking back now, maybe her friends were there with signs; she couldn’t be sure, though.

“Aye, Lil’ Swablu,” her grandfather whispered, white mustache rising as he was the first to pull her in. “Ya did good with yer team…”

“Ne-ne-ne!”

“Who’s this puff cloud?” he asked with a chuckle as Lulu jumped up to pound his chest in defense of her. “Spirited young lass, ain’t she.”

“Hey, Grandpa,” Rhea whispered, trying to hold back the emotion in her voice while moving closer to squeeze the surprised Cosmog between them. “Hmm-hmm. I’m… not great, but holding in there. Where’s Dad?”

Her brother met her with her grandma, showing his supportive smile, as always, but his Aura was boiling. “He’s in with Brock and Mom. We don’t want to crowd them as he figures out what to do. We saw the win,” he said, hugging her and pulling away to point at the screen, Koga silently retreating to the corner. “Alice was clutch.”

“Yeah, she did good. Grandma…”

Glacia swooped in to pull her into a comforting embrace, Aura waves radiating a warmth that made her bottom lip quiver. “It’s okay to cry, Sweetie. I’ve done some myself… No mother wants to see their daughter in that kind of shape.”

“Mmm… Mmm-hmm,” she choked, sniffing back the fire crawling up her throat. “I’m just… trying to figure out what’s happening. Mom’s going to… She’s going to be okay. Right, Grandma?”

“Of course, she will… Your mom’s gone through worse, and it wasn’t any kind of special energy type that can’t be cured. That doesn’t mean this isn’t rough for all of us.”

“Mmhmm.” Accepting the handkerchief her grandmother handed her, she looked over at the door, spotting Lance sitting in the corner, arms crossed and deep in thought as he tried to give them space. Scanning the area, she couldn’t see her blonde cousin. “Where’s Bi?”

Sabin took in a deep breath and pointed at the room next to them. “She went to the, umm, bathroom a bit ago… She’s not taking it well. She ran Hilbert and Hilda off to look for Ghetsis with everyone else.”

Sucking in air, Rhea puffed it out in a controlled stream and rubbed her wet cheeks with the handkerchief before finding her internal strength. “Okay. I’ll talk to her. Umm, what about Ash and Dawn?”

Her grandfather showed a solemn smile, but Rhea could tell he wanted to be out hunting for the people who hurt his daughter more than anything. But he was here to support them, trusting the younger generation to handle the legwork.

“Your aunt’s been chewin’ ‘em out, runnin’ them black and blue ta find answers since she’s stuck in Sinnoh. Ghetsis made a lotta enemies, but that Mukin’ Ditto has got him practically invisible. Iris put a fire under everyone’s tails, though. We’ll get ‘im, Darlin’.”

“I know… Hey, Mr. Koga?” He nodded silently, waiting for her question as everyone looked between them. “Can you pick up Alice and Mya when they’re recovered? And, umm, what about my teammates?”

Her brother came in for another hug, strong arms squeezing her tight. “Mom and I didn’t know what you wanted to tell them. I haven’t even told Kate… Lyra and most of the big shots already know Ghetsis made a move, but not all the details. She wanted to wait until you decided what to do.”

Lips drawing in and thinking about her cousin and everything her teammates went through with Plasma already, Rhea was thankful they’d waited. “Tell Kate and Jason… I’m sure she already knows something’s wrong. But, umm, maybe it would be better if… Amira and Lori have been through a lot already. I’ll message them.”

“Thanks, Sis… Yeah, Kate could tell something was wrong. She’s so Muking perceptive. Haaa… You never think this kind of thing can happen. You know?”

She gave him an encouraging smile this time, half wondering if he was saying that to help her rather than himself; it would be like her big brother. “Tell Jason I’ll be back when I can. I’m sure he’s worried about Mom almost as much as we are… Be back in a bit.”

Waving them off, she paused at the door upon realizing she didn’t have her phone, yet a flash of rainbow lights, and Janine popped up with a supportive face, handing her the device.

“On a break between brackets and figured you probably didn’t get it. Let us know if you need anything.”

Laughing at how ridiculous the situation was, she accepted it. “Thank you, Janine, for the battle and for being so accommodating to me and my family. I know you’re probably dealing with all sorts of security stuff right now.”

“You have no idea!” she giggled, showing a strained smile. “All that is beside the point. Things will get better, even if it’s rough right now… Aaaaaand, I sound like a total loser who doesn’t understand how you feel.”

She shook her head, thinking back to her speech and everything she’d seen as a kid during the Ultra War. “No, I think most Masters know how I feel… I’ve seen too much of it as a little girl.”

“Yeah… I hear ya,” Janine said, opening her arms welcomingly. “Want another useless hug from an almost complete stranger?”

“Haha. I won’t decline.”

Feeling the weight on her shoulders being shared with every embrace, Rhea thanked her, waved at her family for strength, and slid the wood door open. She entered a hallway, seeing many doors with plaques clearly indicating each room’s purpose; the bathroom sat near the end of the corridor.

Closing the waiting room door, she breathed a few more times, rubbing her phone as Lulu floated down to land on her head and hug her. Nova was resting next to her spirit, providing her own comfort.

Halfway down the hall, she leaned against the wall and brought up her contacts, hovering over her friend’s numbers, but she clicked on the one below Amira’s. Fixing her hair and dabbing at her cheeks again, the ringer didn’t sound more than four times.

“Rhea, how are you doing?” said a concerned, motherly voice.

“Hey, Lyra. I’m figuring it out. How’s Amira?”

“Very happy and excited, actually. Apparently, she had a surprise visit when she went to the Center. Right now, she’s talking about your matches with her grandfather a bit ahead of me. We’re going to the Center to wait for you.”

A pause came as Rhea found her elbow, a battle raging in her heart, and the brunette’s soft voice interpreted it before she could respond. “You’re sweet, Rhea. Amira will be mad if you don’t tell her, but I know you don’t want to bring up bad memories. Do you want me to run cover for you and let her know you’re going to have a private family gathering tonight?”

The band compressing her chest eased up at the kind mom’s gentle offer. “Thank you, Lyra. Amira got her first badge. Maybe you could see if Lucian can join you guys or something,” she said with a wry smile, knowing the suggestion would certainly distract the redhead. “Amira and he seemed to make up, and haha, I know she sounded like she enjoyed their private time out the other day.”

“A date, huh… With the infamous Kalos boy? Why didn’t she tell me?” Lyra hummed with sudden interest that made Rhea nervous she might have done an oopsie.

“I, uh, I mean, I don’t know if it was a date. They just broke into the zoo to see the tigers, as well as did a few fun things that didn’t seem like Amira.”

She wanted to bite her tongue as Lyra’s voice became even more enthralled; Rhea could practically see the mother’s shining eyes fixated on her daughter’s back through the call. “My daughter… broke the law with this boy? First Kekipi, and now Lucian. Hmmm…”

I’m sorry, Amira! I didn’t mean to…

“A-Anyway, thanks, Lyra. I want Amira to have a fun night; she doesn’t need to feel down since there’s nothing she can do, and I’ve got my family here. I’m not fine, but I’ll be fine.”

Lyra sighed, voice lowering. “I knew you were a good match to be my daughter’s friend, Rhea. I’ll say it again, though: Amira’s going to be upset when she eventually finds out. She’s a smart girl and will also understand after some thought. I’ll have my phone if you need me.”

“Thank you.”

Hanging up before she put her foot in her mouth again, Rhea hovered between two names next. Mother or father… Big sister. Sliding down further, she clicked the contact, and the woman’s chipper voice came on, laughter heard in the background.

“Rhea, can I guess you’re calling me to run interference with my little sis because you want her to celebrate her victory and not worry about something she can’t fix?”

“H-How did you know?” Rhea mumbled.

“Mmm. I wrote a story about a character like you once: very sensitive about other’s feelings, trying not to be a burden, and feeling like the odd country bumpkin that doesn’t know anything about the world. You’re more like Lori than you know; you’re just a lot braver than her to show it. Unfortunately, I’ll need to skip our family party and meet Iris soon to search for Ghetsis in my own way.”

“Thanks?” Rhea didn’t know if she was dissing her, complimenting her, or what she was trying to get across. “Should I call one of your parents?”

“No, I can tell them,” Shauntel bluntly replied. “Honestly, I doubt Lori will last the next few hours before she collapses after all the fortitude she used in her battle, and I bet Len and Cass will take all of her attention until she turns into a Ghost. She’ll be fine. I’ll probably see you later tonight, though. Stay strong.”

A little thrown off by how happy the Ghost Grandmaster sounded, Rhea pulled her phone away from her ear as Shauntel hung up, an emoji of her hugging a ghost with a heart rising out of it soon arriving.

I guess Ghost specialists are kind of in their own little world… Lori does kind of hide her feelings.

“Huh…” Emotions thrown for a loop by the strange call, Rhea smiled, figuring it was the woman’s own way of helping. “Okay.”

Building herself up, Rhea felt some of her internal strength somehow returning as a hot flame lit somewhere within her, feeding her power and comfort. Fingers tightening against her breast, her smile softened as Lulu moved down to hug her neck; she could practically feel the words welling up within her core.

“I’m here to offer what aid I can.”

Thank you, V…

Rhea swallowed the sticky saliva in her throat, feeling well enough to release Nova after the spike. Her Eevee promptly turned around and hopped up on her hind legs to hug her.

“Pwe-pwe.”

“Ne! Ne-ne-ne!”

Bending down, she set her phone on the ground to pet Nova and pat Lulu. “Thanks for always being by my side, girls… We need to be there for my cousin right now, though. Mom’s safe, and she’s getting care. We can’t see her until Brock is done, and I need something to put my energy toward… Care to smother Bi in love with me?”

Both her Eevee and Cosmog set their hearts with a nod.

“Pwe!”

“Ne-ne!”

“Okay…” Taking one deep breath, she puffed it out in a rush. “We can do this.”

Striding forward, Rhea didn’t need to use her Aura; she’d just let her heart speak for itself as she opened the girls’ bathroom doors to enter the inner rest area. A lump formed in her throat as she saw her blonde cousin, hair all wild, huddled in the corner, hugging herself and shivering—reminding her that, despite being a twenty-six-year-old and married adult, Bi had her Gengars, too.

“Bi…” Rhea whispered as the blonde’s chest quaked upon seeing her shiny, green eyes breaking into tears again, her glasses broken beside her.

“R-Rh… Rhea, I’m so sorry!” she cried, burying her face in her arms. “I’m sorry!”

Nova and Lulu flew over to hug her, Rhea moving slower to give her cousin a bit of time to process her presence. Sliding down beside her, she scooted in to lean against her shoulder, not wanting to go too fast and make her run away. Bianca was super sensitive, especially after she was bullied by her own fans, which caused some self-esteem issues when she was a teenager.

She didn’t say anything, letting her cousin let go of her own internalized guilt that no one was going to dispel but herself. Be it cooking, research, battling, or anything else in life, Bianca wasn’t listening to anyone but her own inner nightmares at this stage, and she just needed her to be nearby when her emotions started to settle.

Bangs bunching against her ear, Rhea leaned against the woman’s side, letting her presence be felt while not going overboard. She forgot how often they’d sat like this when she was a little girl, snuggled together in bed, off in the forest against a tree, or her favorite hideaway spot, the wild Pokemon food shed near the edge of town.

Worse, she probably felt like she’d not only failed her but her mother, as well; her mom’s impossible station and legacy were always hanging over her like a guillotine. It was Rhea’s mom that Bianca most connected to as a researcher rather than a Legendary Trainer, which probably made her beat herself up even more.

After a time, Bianca sniffed back her tears, choking a few times. “I failed her… How could I let Ghetsis get close enough to me to steal my memories and DNA? It’s my fault she’s in there… She told me where to pick her up to… to see you, a-and now she’s…”

Not knowing the details, and not needing them right now, Rhea scooted in closer with her Pokemon, relying on her cousin’s own Pokemon to eventually coax her out of her internal, self-destructive loop.

“I was the weak link… I’m always the weak link… I’m never good enough… Why isn’t anyone mad at me? Why can’t I do anything right? I’m not a good wife, I’m not a good Trainer, I’m not… I’m not a good daughter, I’m not a good researcher… I’m useless…”

Reaching around to pull her head against her chest, Rhea coughed and took a deep breath. “You’re a good cousin. Who always helps me when I’m feeling down?”

“I’m not good, though,” she protested. “I’m not… Look what happened to your mom b-because of me! Aunt Christie’s always been good to me… always. And now… now…”

“She’ll be okay. We’ll all be okay… It’s okay, Bi. It’s okay,” she whispered, knowing she needed the reinforcement as she pulled her tighter to give her a stronger sense of support. “Grandma said it’ll be okay, and you know Grandma never lies. Ah-hah. I don’t think she can…”

“Haaa… I’m sorry, Rhea. I’m so useless—now you’re worried a-about me, and everyone’s… I’m sorry…”

Holding her cousin for a time, Rhea tried not to cry—unsuccessfully, but sometimes it helped Bianca to calm down as the tables reversed. Lulu and Nova wept with them, and the few women that came into the restroom let them be once seeing them huddled together in the corner.

Eventually, Bianca leaned into her, letting Rhea know she was doing better. “I know—it’s not my fault,” she mumbled, swallowing the lump in her throat. “It’s just… the fact he used me to get to Aunt Christie… hurts. His unique Ditto can also copy its victim’s memories to some extent, and… and just knowing I shook hands with him… thought he was some friend in the town… It scares me.”

“That is pretty crazy,” Rhea said, finding her hand to hold it and making her cousin’s puffy cheeks lift into a pained smile. “He can really turn into anyone?”

“Mhm… It’s, umm, some insane project your mom was working on with Rocket. Apparently, it was the whole reason for the Skull and Plasma stuff back when you were in Viridian. It’s scary to think that all of that was going on when you were there… You could even be him, and… and…”

“Bi…” Rhea soothed, pulling her in. “We’re okay. My mom’s going to be okay. Iris, your husband, Ash, Dawn… Everyone’s out looking for him. Without you, Hilbert, and Hilda, we wouldn’t have even known something happened to my mom. Thank you, Bi. It’s thanks to you that she was rescued!”

“No. No, no… It was Hilbert and Hilda… I was just with them…”

“Which is the whole point,” she said, lightly bonking heads with her cousin. “Blame Ghetsis! I blame Ghetsis. He used you, and that’s not your fault. He’s the bad guy, not you! I love you, Bi… You’re practically my big sister. So comfort me, okay!”

“Hehe… You’re too nice,” she sniffed, hugging her back. “Alright. Buck up, girl! Be the grown-up! We’ll get Ghetsis, right?”

“Yeah!”

“He’s the villain!”

“Yeah! Get mad!”

“I am mad!”

“Then get madder!”

“Grrr!”

“Grrr!” Meeting heads, they smiled at each other through their tears, Lulu and Nova mirroring them. “That’s it! You ready to call your Klutzy husband and let him know you’re okay now?”

“Mhm… And he’s not a klutz! He is dorky, though, and I love him for it. Humph.”

“That’s the proud and delusional wife I know!” Rhea snickered, catching another light headbutt that made her stomach shake with mirth. “I’m going to go back and tell everyone you’re ready to kick Ghetsis’ tail while you talk to your hubby. Mad?”

“Furious!”

“Grrr!”

“Grrr! Haha.”

Hugging one last time, she broke away and went to the mirror to splash cold water on her face and give her cousin a thumbs up. “We good?”

“We’re good,” she said with a rosy grin, returning the gesture. “Only… fix that hair. You’re a mess! It’ll worry your mom.”

“Haha. Okay, Mom!”

Giggling, she motioned for her cousin to get over to help her, and she let the fragile blonde fuss over her a little. Once done, they embraced, and Rhea went back to the waiting room. She hardly got through the door when Jason was all over her.

“Rhea, are you okay?! Is Bi okay?! What can I do?”

“Woah, woah!” she laughed, trying to fend him off with held-up hands as she circled around him. “Not jump me like that! Sheesh. Bi’s okay now,” she reassured, directing it to her other family members. “She’s calling her dork husband r—Dad?”

She cut off, throat catching as she saw her father and Brock sitting just outside the private room. Choking up, she walked into his open arms as he smiled and came to meet her.

“Mom, is she…”

“She said to send you in when you got back. I’m sure Bi will get a stern talking to when she gets in. You know how hypocritical your mother is. Only she can blame and beat herself up. Am I right?”

“So right! Haha… Thanks, Dad… Thanks for saving, Mom.”

“Such a troublesome woman, huh?”

“Mhm!”

“But we love her, so… what can we do?”

“Beat her up!” Rhea responded with a huff. “Ground her for life! Lock her in the house and never let her out!”

Her grandparents chuckled with her brother and Kate, holding hands and being cute in the corner. Koga wasn’t there anymore, likely waiting at the Center for when her Pokemon would be ready to come back.

Guiding her away, her dad gently pushed her toward the door. “Go tell her the bad news; she’s been put on house arrest for the foreseeable future.”

“For the whole future,” she grumbled in response, getting a thumbs up from Jason that she returned; it was so nice to have family here to support her. She couldn’t imagine losing any one of them. “Be back in a bit.”

She slipped through the door, surprised to see Lance, Elaine, Ash, and Dawn inside, standing around her mother’s bed as they whispered to one another.

Ash had his hat off, running his fingers through his hair as she entered. “So, Mewtwo did create some kind of shield around you to block anything from breaking into your mind, and that’s why he couldn’t use the Ditto’s—oh, Rhea!”

“Pwe.”

Nova’s eyes widened as her mother poked her head around Elaine’s leg.

“Pwe?”

“Pwe-pwe.”

Rhea felt relief and comfort come to her Eevee as her Champion jogged over to nuzzle her, Lulu getting in on the action.

Ash looked from the greeting Eevee to nudged his head to the others. “Let’s give them some space. You got anything to say, Cynthia?”

Dawn held up a phone, showing her aunt’s somber, pain-filled smile on a video chat. “Rhea, I’ll make sure this never happens again. I’m so, so sorry I can’t be down there right now.”

Holding up two thumbs and hoping it didn’t come off as exaggerated, she forced a laugh. “It’s okay, Auntie. I know you would be here if there was any way possible, and Dawn’s here! That’s lucky, right?”

“Yeah…”

The blue-haired girl gave her an encouraging gesture as the others did the same, filing out after her. “We’re here for you if you need us, Rhea. We’ll just be in the other room.”

Rhea motioned at Ambrosia that she could stay to support Nova, who could also use her own lifeline. She walked over to sit beside her mother, seeing a somewhat exhausted smile that put a nail into her gut.

“I know you’re probably sick of sorries. So, I’ll settle with, I’m doing better than I was.”

“I’m calm now.”

“That’s good… How is Bi? You’re the only one she’d listen to, and she’s so hard on herself.”

“Dad’s right… You’re such a hypocrite,” she sniffed, glaring at her depressed mother.

“The sins of the mother and father—” she dramatically said before Rhea sharply tapped two fingers against her forehead. “Ouch! I’m injured,” she grumbled as Rhea took the initiative to rub her smarting head in her place.

“Which is why I’m doing this,” she whispered, taking a seat next to her and finding it hard to keep her emotions after seeing all the bandages around her mother’s wounds. “I know you need to rest… Are you comfortable?”

“As much as I can be,” she softly chuckled. “Oh, Lulu. Hello.”

“Ne?” the Cosmic Pokemon lightly chirped, trying to fix her blankets.

“I’m doing better. Thank you for your concern. Haaa. Bianca? Your aunt’s worried sick about her.”

“She’s doing okay now,” Rhea nodded. “Bi will probably call her after Hilbert. Umm… So, if Ghetsis didn’t get what he wanted from you because of the psychic shield thing… is he going to come back for you?” she squeaked, heavy blue eyes staring into her mom’s.

A long sigh left her mother’s split lips. “I don’t know, Rhea… I don’t know. All I know is that he wanted information on the first dragon and my findings when uniting the DNA from Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem. I’m not the only one with that information, but I seemed to be the easiest to get to… ironically. The others are being put in witness protection.”

Seeing the look on her face, her mother held open her hand for Rhea to take. “Hey… no one wants to see Ghetsis get what he wants. Giovanni says his top scientists have just put together a prototype device that will destabilize the Ditto in a radial area. Is it tested? No. But, it is something and looks promising… at least from my unqualified eyes on the subject.”

It got a strained smile from Rhea. “Funny. Mom… I know I say it a lot, but… but please, please take better care of yourself. I can’t lose you.”

“I know. I know… Umm, onto another subject,” she said, settling back in. “The Victini inside of you is going through some kind of metamorphosis due to your bonded Pokemon, Aura training, and… as Ash pointed out, the primary contributor is probably the shamanistic side you accidentally dabbled in at Lavender. You met V, huh? Ash told me.”

Rhea’s eyes widened. “You know V’s name?”

“Haha. Yes, well, I wasn’t sure if you were making her up as your imaginary friend due to the stories I used to read you or were actually communicating with her as a child, but I’m sure it was the latter now. Want to tell me about it before I give up the Ghost? You can tell me a bedtime story this time.”

Wanting to jab her mother’s forehead again, she restrained herself for her health. “It’s not long, but okay. It started when you went MIA, and Ash was trying to figure out my Aura troubles. We had a vacation in the Orange Archipelago, where I met this nice redhead and another contender for Ash’s girlfriend list.”

“Hehehe. Go on. I see you’ve gone down the Buneary hole that is Ash’s love life.”

Rhea rolled her eyes. “It’s a deep and windy one.”

“Oh, Sweetie,” her mother said with a pained whisper, “you have no idea… V?”

“Back to V.”

Rhea’s fear melted away as she spent one-on-one time with her mother, and something felt different between them as her battered and beaten mom listened and laughed with her, asked questions, and engaged with her story. Despite the circumstances, she was starting to enjoy it.