The Eon Academy [S.S. Wishmaker Side-Story]

[[Desolate Divine]]

Episode 10: Legacies (Part 2)

Spoiler:

“World Famous Battler, Richard Strauss, killed in car accident…”

Jon was too late.

“Abbee…” he began, though didn’t know what to say. “I’m so sorry…”

Charlotte stood a metre or two away looking at the TV in shock, whilst Dylan had his hand on her shoulder, and she was muttering to herself.

“No… No…”

The news reporter described the accident, explaining Richard driving down the Goldenrod City Highway, and a car controlled by someone driving under the influence merged from the entry ramp, at high speed, sideswiping Richard’s car. Whilst the impact itself wasn’t what caused his death, Richard’s car was knocked sideways, before being clipped on the rear quarter by another car in the lane on the other side, causing it to spin ninety degrees, and roll numerous times. By the time emergency services had arrived he was already gone.

Abbee began frantically patting her legs where her pockets were, as if she were looking for something, before starting to sob, as she frantically started pulling the cushions off the couch, desperately searching for something.

“Where is it…” she sobbed to herself, as Dylan got up, and walked out of the room, passing Jon. Charlotte realized where he was going, calling out for him to wait, but it fell on deaf ears.

“Turn it off,” Jon said. “And stay with Abbee.”

Charlotte nodded, trying to console Abbee as Jon went after Dylan.

Dylan reached Justin’s bedroom door, pounding on it as hard as he could.

“What?” Justin called out, irritated at the obnoxious knocking.

“Open the door,” Dylan replied, sounding more assertive than anybody had ever heard him.

“It sounds like you want to murder me, so why would I do that?” Justin replied jokingly, however Dylan had had enough. Chris walked out of his own room, wondering what the fuss was about, to see Dylan take a step back, before ramming the door with his shoulder, knocking it in and ripping the lock out of its frame.

“What the f**k?” Chris shouted as he followed Dylan into the room, trying to figure out what was going on.

Justin lay on the bed reading a magazine when the door was knocked in, scrambling to his feet when Dylan broke into the room.

“What’s your problem?” Justin asked, as Dylan grabbed him by the collar, before shoving him to the ground. Dylan was by far the biggest student there, bigger than Jon, but his quiet demeanour tended to cause people to forget that…

“Where’s the phone?” Dylan asked.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?!” Justin replied, lying to spite Dylan.

“Where’s the f**king phone?!” Dylan shouted. Chris watched in shock as Dylan picked Justin up by the collar, before slamming him into the wall.

“Dylan!” Jon called out, as he rushed into the room, gently pushing Chris to the side out of his way.

“What’s going on?” Justin asked.

“Justin, give me the phone,” Jon said firmly.

“I don’t have it-” Justin began as Jon cut him off.

“Don’t lie to me again, or I will send you straight home,” Jon interrupted. “Now give me the damn phone.”

Justin went pale, as Dylan let go of him, and stood aside, whilst Justin made his way to the window, which had a fake pot plant sitting underneath it. Pulling the plastic plant out of the pot, he pulled out a phone, handing it to Jon.

“We will talk about this later…” Jon said, as he left the room, Dylan following behind him. When they were gone, Justin spoke up.

“What was that about?” Justin asked, looking at the now destroyed door frame, that Dylan had ripped the lock from.

“I have no clue…”

Jon and Dylan returned downstairs, where Abbee remained in the lounge, sobbing as Charlotte hugged her. Jon handed her the phone, which she booted up, to find numerous missed calls from relatives, mostly her brother Tyler.

“Let’s get you to the house,” Jon said quietly to Abbee, who nodded, though didn’t cease her weeping.

She got up, and followed Jon towards the front door, as Charlotte tried to follow.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Charlotte asked.

“Just keep the others off her back for now,” Jon said. “Last thing she needs is Justin trying to apologize or something…”

Charlotte, nodded, as Jon left the building behind Abbee. As the door closed, she heard footsteps behind her, as Chris and Justin descended the staircase.

“What the hell is going on?” Chris asked.

“Abbee just found out her dad died…” Charlotte said, before directing her words towards Justin. “She found out watching the news, because she didn’t have her phone...”

Justin went white, as Chris put all the pieces together.

“You f**king idiot!” Chris said, shoving Justin. “Why did you keep taking her phone?”

“I-” Justin stammered, realizing he had screwed up, speechless at what had happened.

“You said it’s because she is always on her phone, didn’t you?” Charlotte asked. “You know why she seemed so attached to it?”

Justin didn’t respond, so Charlotte continued.

“Because her mum died when she was a kid, and that’s where she has all the old photos and videos of her,” Charlotte said coldly. “Instead of understanding why, you made fun of her, and took it, so not only could she not look at the last photos she has of her mum, she also couldn’t find out her sad had died before it was on the f**king news…”

“I’m sorry…” Justin said quietly.

“I’d tell you to say it to her, but right now you’re probably the last person she wants to see,” Charlotte said. “So just leave her alone…”

Charlotte went upstairs, as Chris looked at Justin, who was now shaking, realizing what had happened.

“Hey…” Chris said, resisting the urge he had to yell at him. Whilst Justin had screwed up, between the verbal assault he had received from Jon and Charlotte, and the physical assault from Dylan, he had learnt his lesson. At least, Chris hoped so.

“I’m a piece of s**t…” Justin said quietly. “When she says it like that, there isn’t any arguing it. I’m a piece of s**t…”

“Look, you screwed up pretty bad,” Chris said. “But beating yourself up over it isn’t going to change anything…”

“What do I do then…”

The words were quiet, and it almost sounded like Justin was crying, though Chris couldn’t tell with Justin’s gaze being at the floor.

“Give her some space, and when she is ready, apologize,” Chris said. “And don’t f**king take it again…”

Justin was silent, as he thought over everything Charlotte had said.

“Everyone needs a bit of space right now, so maybe give it to them. See where they’re at tomorrow,” Chris said, gesturing towards the stairs. “I’d start by figuring out how you’re going to try and make it up to her when she is ready to hear it…”

Chris began walking up the stairs, as Justin followed not far behind. Whilst Chris wanted space himself, he also wasn’t one hundred percent sure that Dylan wouldn’t take a swing at Justin if they ran into each other in the hall…

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

When Abbee and Jon arrived at the house, Alyssa quickly came over, pulling Abbee into a tight hug, before Jon took her to one of the spare rooms, where she could get in touch with her family. There were calls from various of her extended family, aunts, uncles, cousins, but most of them were from her older brother Tyler. She quickly tapped on his name as she sat on the bed in the empty room, and the phone began to dial.

”Abbee?” Tyler asked, choking back tears himself. “Where have you been?”

“I’m sorry…” Abbee replied. “My phone was missing, and I only found it after I saw the news…”

Struggling to hold it in, she began to cry again. The news just didn’t seem real, and now she was talking to Tyler about it, the reality was truly sinking in, and was much more devastating. She half expected Tyler to lecture her, but was glad when he didn’t.

“How much do you know?” Tyler asked.

“A drunk driver hit him and caused another car to-” Abbee replied, but couldn’t bring herself to say the words, before her sobbing became incomprehensible.

“Yeah…” Tyler said. “He was on his way to be a guest on a talk show when it happened…”

The pair spent the next few minutes talking before Tyler asked Abbee a question she hadn’t even thought about yet.

“Abbee, when can you come home?” Tyler asked. “We need to plan the funeral…”

“I- I don’t know,” Abbee said. “I will talk to Jon to organize the first flight I can back to Goldenrod.”

“Keep me posted,” Tyler said. “I gotta go call some more people before they find out the same way you did.”

“I will let you know as soon as I know.”

“Abbee, do you have a good group around you?” Tyler asked, taking her a little by surprise. “I don’t want you to feel alone. Not now…”

“I will be okay,” Abbee said, wiping tears away. “As okay as I can be. They’re pretty good here…”

“Good,” Tyler replied, equally teary. “Keep in touch. Love you Abbee.”

“Love you too…”

Abbee hung up the phone, before having a quick look through her missed calls and voice messages, with one from a few hours earlier standing out to her.

Dad.

Realizing what this was, she quickly tapped on the voicemail notification, placing the phone up to her ear.

”Hey Abbee. You didn’t pick up, so I’m guessing that boy has your phone again. You really should ask Jon to scare him straight. He strikes me as the sort who would be good at something like that.

Anyway, I just wanted to call to tell you how much I loved watching you battle on that Live-Stream today, and how well you battled. If I didn’t have a chance to see that, I think next time we trained together, you would have given me a run for my money with those tricks.

I am loving seeing how much you’ve grown this summer, but even more than that, I loved seeing how much fun you were having today, especially when you were commentating Jon and Steven’s match. You have no idea how proud I was when Jon beat the Hoenn Champion by copying you.

Really, I was glad to see you having so much fun today, because I was starting to worry you were only battling because I battled as well. And that may be the case. I just want you to know that whatever path you go down, I know you will do the right thing, and will be your biggest supporter in whatever you do.

I need to get going, so I will keep it short. Give me a call back when you can.

Love you Abbee.”

As the message ended, Abbee broke down, feeling guilty that she missed this last chance to speak to her Dad, but thankful he had wanted to say that enough to leave it as a message, that she could listen to again.

She sat in the dark room, listening to the message over and over, until she realized she needed to find a way home. She walked out of the room, where she heard Jon and Alyssa talking in the kitchen down the hall. Quickly trying to dry her eyes, if not just so she could have a conversation unencumbered by the tears, she made her way down the hall, where Jon and Alyssa sat at the table. She presumed Amelia had been put in her room for a nap.

“Hey…” Alyssa said kindly, gesturing for her to come sit next to her, though unsure of what to say.

“Abbee, we will do whatever we can to support you,” Jon said. “Just say the word.”

“I need to get back to Johto…” she said. “I need to be with my family, and we have to plan the funeral and-”

She tried to hold it in, before tearing up again, as Alyssa wrapped an arm around her, pulling her in close.

“I will get us on the first plane back there…”

Abbee was glad to hear that, though took a second to comprehend something.

“Us?” she asked.

“I was a little younger than you when I lost my parents,” Jon said. “Though I barely had a Dad, I was fourteen when I lost my Mum and him. And the thing that hurt the most at the time was being alone right after it happened. So if you’ll have me, I will come with you. As long as you’re okay with that…”

Abbee thought about what he said. Whilst the thought of travelling home by herself terrified her, and she would much rather have company at least until she knows what the future looks like for her. But there was something about it she couldn’t shake.

“But what about the others?” Abbee asked. “They still have another two weeks here…”

“Of course you’re thinking about what’s best for them right now,” Jon said jokingly. “Steven would happily fill in for me, and I have other contacts I could call in favors for. And they would understand, even if we finished a few weeks early…”

“No,” Abbee said firmly. “Jon, I really appreciate you offering to do that for me, but I couldn’t do that to the others, even if you insisted that things would be fine without you. They don’t say it, but half of the reason we all came was to learn under you.”

“Abbee…” Jon began before Alyssa spoke up.

“What if I go with you instead?” Alyssa asked, surprising both Jon and Abbee, “Amelia will be fine with Jon for a week. She will be fine won’t she?”

“Of course,” Jon said. “But are you sure?”

“I agree with you. Abbee shouldn’t have to go alone. And if she doesn’t want to keep you from the others, then I will go.” Alyssa said before joking slightly, “I haven’t had a week off since Amelia was born, so I see this solution as a win-win.”

Jon smiled weakly, trying to be aware of his tone given the circumstances.

“What about that Abbee? Would it be okay if Alyssa went with you?”

“It would mean the world to me…” Abbee said, starting to cry again. “I just don’t want to be alone right now…”

“Then I will find flights now,” Jon said, stepping out of the room, to grab his tablet, as Alyssa spoke up.

“Abbee, you’re being so brave…” Alyssa said quietly as she rubbed Abbee’s shoulder. “It takes a special person to think about other people in the midst of their own troubles. Your dad would be proud. Your mum too…”

Abbee continued to sob in Alyssa’s arms, as Jon entered the room with a web page open.

“It’s nearly 5pm now,” Jon explained. “I can get a flight at 1am, that will get you to Goldenrod at 9am tomorrow morning. It will take two hours on the ferry, so we have plenty of time.”

Abbee nodded, somewhat thankful that she would spend most of the flight, ideally asleep, if the day's news didn’t keep her awake all night.

“I will make it happen then,” Jon said. “There is a ferry leaving Mossdeep at 9:30, so we should leave here at 8:30. Is that okay?”

“I will let Tyler know.” Abbee explained, “Then go and get packed.”

“I’d better go pack as well. And say goodbye to Amelia…” Alyssa said.

“Thanks Alyssa. I know it can’t be easy…”

“Amelia will be fine, and it will do Jon good to carry a little more weight,” she said jokingly as Jon rolled his eyes.

“Still, thank you.”

Alyssa stepped out to pack, whilst Abbee sent Tyler a text to let her know when to expect her, before her and Jon made their way back to the lodge, to pack her belongings.

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Charlotte lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling, as she considered how the day had changed. It had been about an hour since Abbee had seen the news story about her dad, and nothing seemed real. Whilst Charlotte didn’t know Abbee before this summer, and only met her dad on the first day, and didn’t even interact with him, only saw him drop her off and chat to Jon, her heart broke for Abbee.

One of the things that surprised Charlotte about Abbee, was how nothing seemed to scare her, and instead of that causing her to be arrogant and stuck up, it instead caused her to be one of the kindest and most open-hearted people she knew. And it didn’t take long for Charlotte to realize how much of that was from the unconditional love and support her dad gave her. And now he is gone…

Charlotte groaned, knowing that her dwelling was not going to fix anything. And whilst she was angry at Justin, and wanted to stay in her room, so she didn’t have to look at him, she hated being by herself.

She sat up, and made her way out of the room, knocking on each of the doors around her, or in Justin’s case, the doorframe.

“I’m going to put on a movie, if you want to watch,” she said to each, before making her way downstairs. She sat in the lounge for a few minutes, as one by one, the others in the lodge made their way down. She didn’t necessarily want to talk to everyone, but she didn’t want to be by herself.

Before she could say anything, the door of the lodge opened, and Abbee’s quiet footsteps were heard, followed by Jon’s louder footsteps. Whilst Charlotte considered giving her space, she remembered the first time they all watched a movie together. How hard Abbee worked to make that happen, and how much she loved the fact they all did that together.

Charlotte stood up as Chris shot her a concerned look, as if to say “maybe she doesn’t want to see us…”. Ignoring him, Charlotte made her way to the doorway, where Abbee saw her. Charlotte gave her a hug, and was surprised when Abbee spoke first.

“I’m going back to Johto, tonight,” Abbee said. “But I will come back as soon as I can.”

“When do you leave?” Charlotte asked.

“About 8:30 to get to Lilycove, then a flight to Goldenrod at 1am," Abbee explained. “Alyssa is coming with me. I just need to pack…”

Looking at the time, seeing Abbee had a bit of time before she had to leave, she spoke up.

“Look, the others and I are going to watch a movie, and it’s completely okay if you aren’t feeling up for it, but we’d love for you to join us,” Charlotte said. “It’s not worth much, but you can pick what we watch.”

Abbee was struck by the gesture, and by how well Charlotte understood her to know to ask that.

“I’d really like that…” Abbee said. “I’ll go quickly pack what I need, and come down soon.”

Abbee went upstairs, as Charlotte stood awkwardly in the entry room of the lodge with Jon.

“She will always remember this, you know?” Jon said, “Nobody knows exactly how to help and be there for a friend in a time like this, but you’re nailing it.”

“She’d be moving heaven and earth if it happened to any of us,” Charlotte replied.

“Of course she would. Alyssa is going with her because she wouldn’t let me go,” Jon said quietly. “She was going to go alone, so the rest of your summers wouldn’t be affected by it all.”

“Of course she was.” Charlotte replied, “You guys aren’t doing too badly yourself. With all of us.”

Jon chuckled, as he looked up the stairs.

“Well, she seems like she is in capable hands, so I might spend some time with Alyssa, and maybe make sure that I am ready to look after Amelia by myself for a week,” Jon said. “If she needs me, I’m only a phone call away, otherwise, I will be back at 8:30. Really, I’d have loved to join you guys for the movie. Hopefully another time.”

Charlotte nodded, as Jon made his way out of the lodge, and she made her way to the lounge, where Chris, Justin and Dylan waited for her.

“Abbee’s gonna join in, she just needs to pack her stuff first,” Charlotte said,.“You guys wanna go get some snacks and blankets?”

Justin nodded, quickly standing, and darting past Charlotte to the kitchen, as Dylan and Chris went upstairs to grab some blankets. By the time Abbee silently joined them in the lounge, popcorn had been made, drinks brought out, and a couple of tubs of icecream readied.

“So what are we watching?” Chris asked, as he flicked through Netflix.

“That one down there,” Abbee said, gesturing to an animated movie on the screen. “Bottom right. Dad and I used to watch that one together all the time when I was a kid...”

She went a little quiet towards the end, but was thankful when Chris selected the film. Her and Charlotte sat close together on the floor up against the couch behind them, with Chris and Justin on a couch to their right, and Dylan on one of the dining room chairs he had pulled into the room on their left.

Unlike when they watched the movie together on the fifth week, the movie was watched in relative silence, only Chris seeming confident enough to make the odd comment or joke, though Abbee appreciated it. Every so often, Charlotte would notice Abbee tremble next to her, crying silently in the dark room lit by the TV, and not knowing what else she could do for her, pulled her closer until she seemed a little better.

The movie finished at 7:45, and one by one, the others slowly started to make their way back to their rooms. The first to leave was Chris, offering a gentle condolence to Abbee, as he left, with Justin silently following him, still not sure whether Abbee wanted to hear his own apology or not. Before too long, Dylan left as well, with a gentle touch on the shoulder, though remaining silent, as tended to be his nature, though Abbee seemed to appreciate that even more. Abbee and Charlotte sat in near silence until the sound of the door opening drew them from their silence.

“If you’re ready, Alyssa is going to be leaving for the ferry soon,” Jon said quietly. Abbee nodded, as Jon made his way out.

“I guess it’s time to go,” Abbee answered

“Only for a week or two,” Charlotte said. “And if you get held up, we will just have to catch up after summer is over.”

“Promise?”

“Sure, but if you can, I do want you to come back if you are able,” Charlotte said jokingly.

“I will do everything I can,” Abbee said. “Truth is, I’ll probably end up living with my brother, and he and I were never really close. Even if it's only for a week, I will try and come back for the rest of summer. You guys are like family to me…”

Charlotte couldn’t help but be touched by Abbee’s sentiment, however felt too awkward to do anything to reciprocate it.

“Come on, I’ll walk you up to the car…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Abbee awoke in her family’s home at nearly 3pm on Sunday afternoon. Whilst the flight left Lilycove at 1am and would take eight hours to get to Johto, she couldn’t bring herself to sleep on the plane. Alyssa, though not mentioning it, tried to stay awake with her, however before too long the sleepless nights that come with a three month old baby got the better of her, and she dozed off.

Abbee couldn’t stop thinking about what the future held for her. She knew she was probably going to remain in her family’s home, with Tyler becoming her guardian. He was seven years older than her, and whilst he was still young, he would be able to look after Abbee. Their father was well off from his battling career so providing wouldn’t be an issue. But still, because of the large age gap, and what had happened during their childhood, they weren’t exactly close.

Whilst Abbee struggled to remember her mum too much now, as she was only six years old when she passed away. But she knew that Tyler and their mother Emma were close, and Tyler was thirteen when Emma died.

When she was a bit older, her dad told her how Tyler changed when their mum died. She knew that vaguely enough, as she remembered Tyler being a lot more open than he is now, but her dad confirmed how much he closed himself off to everyone else after she died, and whilst he eventually started to open up again, a piece of him was missing, and he was never the same afterwards. She didn’t blame him. She lost her mum that day too.

Tyler left home to travel when he was sixteen, leaving school, hoping to take after their dad as a competitive battler, returning home semi-permanently when he was eighteen, and returning there when he wasn’t competing in tournaments. Because of this, Abbee felt like Tyler was more of an acquaintance than her brother. Most conversation was shallow and forced, with the most sincere they had ever had being when they spoke on the phone the day before.

On the plane, Abbee had thought long and hard about life moving forward. She was okay living with Tyler, though felt a sense of loneliness from it, with the only person she lived with being a brother she barely knew. However she was thinking even longer term.

Abbee didn’t know what she wanted to do when she graduated high school, whether she wanted to go to university, travel like Tyler did, or compete like their father. Her plan had been to compete until she figured out what she wanted to do, but even then, that was because competing was something she had a natural talent for, as well as training, and if she were going to get by until she had a better idea, it was her best bet. But every possibility she had considered for the future had one common element. Going back to her father’s house to tell him all about whatever adventure she had been on.

On the plane, she realized how neither of her parents would be able to be at her wedding, or meet their grandkids. They wouldn’t even get to see her graduate high school. This weighed on her as they flew to Johto, as well as the thought of what she will do once she graduates. Whatever she does she will practically be doing alone...

They arrived in Goldenrod a little after nine in the morning, where Tyler waited at the airport, seeming to have not slept much himself, to pick them up. He was slightly surprised to see Abbee wasn’t travelling alone, however once Alyssa explained why she came along, he was thankful that someone was willing to go to such lengths to accompany his sister.

Alyssa mentioned finding a hotel, however Abbee and Tyler had insisted she stay with them. The house they lived in, whilst wasn’t a mansion, still wasn’t short on room, and there were multiple spare bedrooms in the house, ready for guests.

They arrived at Abbee and Tyler’s home, and upon walking in to find the house now near empty, Abbee broke down, with Tyler eventually giving in to his own despair and joining her. Knowing Abbee hadn’t slept, and suspecting Tyler was the same, Alyssa kindly suggested they both try and get some sleep. Tyler had set the date for the funeral to be Tuesday, the day after tomorrow, and if they had to plan that, they should try and get some rest before they do this last thing for their Dad. Abbee agreed, and surprisingly, so did Tyler, who Abbee suspected felt a little more comfortable having someone older around to keep a level head. He knew just as well as Abbee did that he was probably going to become her guardian, and wasn’t ready to take on that responsibility so soon after losing their father. Abbee showed Alyssa to one of the spare rooms, before going to sleep herself.

Finding herself the only person awake in this big house, Alyssa had a quick look around, finding the different rooms she may need at different times during her stay, before she got out her laptop, and began researching all they would need to plan the funeral, and local companies who could provide it. Whilst it wasn’t her place to organize it, and she understood that, she figured she’d do what she can to make it as easy for them as possible, noting different venues, florists and companies that arrange and sell caskets.

It was mid-afternoon when Abbee emerged, seeming a bit better rested, though still understandably downcast. Alyssa got Abbee something to eat, before sharing what she had been doing which Abbee was thankful for. When Tyler emerged not too long after, he and Abbee spent some time going through what Alyssa had found. Whilst they had an appointment with a funeral company later that afternoon, she wanted to be prepared, so that the meeting didn’t go too long. Taking notes and saving webpages to a tablet, Tyler drove himself and Abbee to the appointment, leaving Alyssa in the house by herself for a few hours. She called Jon, filling him in on what had happened since they parted ways, and made sure Jon was doing okay with Amelia. Afterwards she spent a bit of time wandering the halls of the large house, admiring the photos on the wall.

Whilst she hadn’t met Richard personally, he was a big enough name that anyone who worked in media like she did would recognize him easily. It didn’t take long to figure out which person in the photo was Abbee’s mum, partially due to how she wasn’t in the photos with Abbee and Tyler when they were older. It was a bitter sweet experience, looking at the photo frames. A record of a life well lived, but also a record of all Tyler and Abbee had now lost. As she wandered through, she made a mental note to get more photos printed and framed. She wanted Amelia to be able to look back and see her family through the years, especially if something were to happen to her, or more likely, Jon…

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Jon had put Amelia to sleep when his phone rang. He quickly put it on silent before it had a chance to wake the infant he had spent the last hour getting to have her nap, before taking the call. It was Alyssa, filling Jon in on what had happened since she left the airport the night before. As Alyssa spoke, Jon was thankful she went instead of him. As much as he had played therapist to some of the teens under his care, he really wasn’t cut out for emotionally caring for them the way Alyssa was. Between that and her ability to research and organize, she was much more help to the pair than he would have been.

Once Jon got off the phone, he walked out into the kitchen, where Victini sat on the table.

“How’re they going in Johto?” Victini asked.

“As well as they can be,” Jon answered. “They couldn’t have someone better there to help them than Alyssa in this situation.”

“I think you would have done okay yourself…” Victini laughed. Jon appreciated his cheer. Whilst it was no true trainer-Pokemon partnership, he was glad to have become better acquainted with the Mythical Pokemon during the mission at Sky Pillar, and understood a lot better why Cassandra enjoyed his company so much, and also how hard it must have been for both of them to say goodbye, both originally, and after the mission.

“You flatter me, but honestly, it’s probably better that I am here. My relationship with my parents was far from normal. Abbee and I both lost our parents, but for Abbee it was a real loss. For me…” Jon said, trying to find the most tactful way of explaining his feelings about it all. “I grew up in fear, and had a childhood nobody should have. Now, Dad is in prison, and Mum is gone, and whilst I am sad that it got to that point, I now know if it didn’t, I’d most likely be dead in a shallow grave, or just doing the same thing my dad did. Alyssa’s parents are still alive, but Alyssa can probably relate to Abbee more right now, because even though I lost both of mine, it’s not like I had a loving home to begin with, you know?”

“I still think you should give yourself some credit,” Victini replied. “Your history might be messy, and at times, brought out a side of you that you wish it didn’t, but in the same way, you used it to help people. Remember the first time we spoke?”

Jon chuckled.

“How could I forget?”

“I thought for sure that we could still fight our way out, and I could defend them if it came to blows, but really, you could have had one of your Pokemon take me out, Latios immobilize them, and hand them over to Lance,” Victini explained. “After Scizor took me down, I realized that I probably was a bit too untrained and out of practise to have stood a chance if I had to actually fight against you. But the fact is that between Latios’ scary ability to understand people more than they understand themselves, and your history, you decided to give them a chance to fix themselves up, and even if the world doesm’t see it itself, I think one day the world will be better for it…”

“You think they will come back?” Jon asked.

“I haven’t got a clue. Cassandra seems pretty set on what she is doing now, and once she puts her mind to it, God help you if you want to try and change it,” Victini said. “That being said, eighteen months ago, she was a completely different person, focusing only on winning and not being caught. Something may happen to draw them back into the world, or it may not…”

“You’re pretty wise yourself, you know?” Jon commented. “Cassandra was lucky to have you as a partner. And whoever you end up battling alongside next will be just as lucky, if not more, now you have a bit more wisdom under your belt.”

“Speaking of which…” Victini began.

“You want me to introduce you to Charlotte?” Jon asked.

“Actually, hearing the way you talked about Abbee, and the effect she has had on the others, I think she might be the one…”

Jon’s eyes widened a little.

“This isn’t a sympathy thing or anything, not at all! But her being the center of attention right now has made it a bit easier to understand her, and the more I do, the more certain I am that I want her to be my partner,” Victini explained. “She is a great battler, but there are more important things than that, and she has them.”

“Honestly, I’m really glad to hear you say that,” Jon said. “Abbee is a great trainer, and has a heart of gold. You would work really well with her. But more than anything, even if she comes back here, she has a week or two here before she goes to a now near empty house, living only with a brother that she seems to barely know, she really just needs a friend, and I know you’d be able to help her through this better than nearly anyone…”

“You think she will come back just for a week or two?” Victini asked.

“I have no doubt,” Jon said, before there was a knock at the front door.

“You might wanna hide…” Jon said. “At least until you’ve had a chance to meet Abbee properly.”

Victini nodded, before moving into one of the spare rooms. Jon made his way to the door, opening it and was slightly surprised to see Justin outside.

“Hey…” Jon said, slightly confused.

“I’m not interrupting anything am I?” Justin asked, surprising Jon at the fact he thought to ask. “I heard you talking inside.”

“I was just on the phone to Alyssa,” Jon lied, kicking himself for being so careless. It was on the record that he wasn’t transformed into a Pokemon, and if someone found out he could understand them, it would give away the fact that the Diamond Ladies are still alive. “But it’s fine. You want to come in?”

Justin nodded sheepishly, as Jon moved aside to let him into the house.

“We will talk in the kitchen,” Jon explained. “Amelia is having a nap, and that’s the best place to talk without waking her.”

Justin nodded as the pair wandered quietly through the lounge into the kitchen. Justin sat at the table, while Jon grabbed a bottle of soft drink from the fridge as well as some glasses before sitting opposite him, pouring them both a glass.

“So when I said we will talk about this later, I wasn’t expecting you to come search me out,” Jon said, half joking.

“Figured the sooner I face the music, the sooner I can actually try and make things right…” Justin murmured, seeming pretty down.

Jon was surprised at how mature Justin was being through this whole thing. The words he said weren’t with bitterness or contempt. He wasn’t like a child who does the minimum to move past an incident, without accepting any sort of responsibility themself.

“Look, in all honesty, I think you’ve faced enough music,” Jon said. “Had you lied to me again and said you didn’t have the phone, that would have been another story. But I know how much Charlotte can tear into people, and whilst I didn’t know Dylan had it in him to knock in a door, and rough someone up like he did, I think you’ve got the message.”

As he said that, Jon had a thought.

“If your door was knocked in, where did you sleep last night?” Jon asked, having been too preoccupied to think of this the night before.

“Chris let me crash in his room until I fix the door,” Justin said.

“Have you ever done any sort of carpentry or handyman work in your life?” Jon asked, curious at Justin thinking he should be the one to fix the door.

Justin shook his head.

“Well how about I fix it later today and you give me a hand. We can call it square after that,” Jon said. “But I do have a question.”

“Why take the phone?” Jon asked. “I’d hear bits and pieces about it, but it was always after Abbee got it back. I should have talked to you about it before, but I always figured if it was sorted, I didn’t need to bring up old issues.”

“I…” Justin began, struggling to find the words. “I honestly don’t know… Looking back at a lot of the stuff I did here, even just screwing around in class when I probably shouldn’t have, I don’t even know…”

Justin went silent, before speaking again, this time almost at a whisper.

“The more I think about it, maybe I was just trying to write myself off…”

Jon was slightly surprised to hear that, but wanted to hear more.

“How so?”

“From Day 0, it was obvious that most of these guys are on a whole other level than me. Chris and Charlotte especially, Abbee as well. Dylan was inexperienced, but had potential,” Justin explained. “I guess, I knew I couldn’t compete. So maybe I thought that if I made it impossible for them to take what I do seriously outside of the battles, maybe they will write off me not measuring up as me just not caring in the battles. Why should he care if he wins or loses? He doesn’t take anything else seriously…”

“Do you care?” Jon asked.

“Of course I do…” Justin replied. “I wouldn’t be spending my summer away from my family and friends if I didn’t. I guess I just would have rathered they think I am a clown or slack-a** than just a terrible trainer…”

Jon let out a sigh, remembering the conversations he had with Charlotte.

“You guys don’t realize how much better off you would all be if you all stopped worrying so much about what other people think of you…” Jon said jestingly.

“Easier said than done…” Justin replied, equally jestful.

“Take it from me, the best trainer you can be is yourself,” Jon said. “The more you understand yourself, where you came from and where you want to go, the more you understand your own strengths and weaknesses, and the more you can put that understanding to good use and grow. Hiding yourself and pretending to be someone else is a lot harder than it sounds, believe me, I know. That time and energy can be better spent elsewhere.”

Justin nodded, as Jon continued.

“So tell me about yourself?” Jon asked. “The real you, not the write-off class clown you have been the last ten weeks…”

The question took Justin by surprise.

“What do you want to know?”

“What do you want to tell me?” Jon asked. “Even just one thing.”

Justin thought for a moment. Such a broad question was difficult to answer, and having really kept to himself for so long, it was difficult.

“I guess…” Justin began. “I actually wanna make a difference in the world, you know? When I die, I want people to remember the life I live, and be thankful for it, beyond just the close friends and family who kind of have to…”

“Well, it’s nice to officially meet you, Justin…” Jon said, holding out his hand for Justin to awkwardly shake. It was cheesy, but Jon wanted him to understand how important what he just admitted and said was.

Justin hesitated, before sighing and shaking Jon's hand.

“Go see if Chris will let you get changed into some older clothes in his room,” Jon explained. “I’ll order a new door, and when Amelia wakes up, we will get to work changing it over…”

Justin nodded, thanking Jon, before Jon escorted him out the front door. As Jon returned to the kitchen, Victini emerged from his hiding place.

“See, you really should give yourself more credit…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Abbee stood in the house she grew up in, now crowded with relatives she hadn’t seen in years, friends of her dad that she saw as uncles and aunts, as well as colleagues from his competition days and recent years in his guest appearances. She was surprised to see Cynthia, Sinnoh Champion who was overseeing affairs in Johto with Lance in prison and there being no replacement in sight. Richard had mentioned to Abbee he had been approached to become the Indigo Champion, however turned down the offer, saying he was too old, and had other reasons to say no, though after hearing what Jon had said about the role, understood a little more.

As she sat quietly, taking a break from being pestered by people wanting to offer their condolences, she remembered the last time the house was this full, of people dressed in black. It was nearly ten years ago, at her mum’s wake. She sat in nearly the same place, on her dad’s lap, as Tyler locked himself in his room. Though she was sad at the time, she felt safe, by some miracle. But now she sat there alone. Abbee noticed a great aunt see where she was sitting and start to walk over from the other side of the room. She let out a sigh, wanting a moment’s peace, but knowing that it was probably too much to ask for.

She heard someone come sit next to her, and turned her head to see Alyssa.

“Want me to pretend to be offering my condolences so everyone else gives you a break?” Alyssa asked, putting her hand on Abbee’s shoulder, who nodded, appreciating the peace. They turned away so that for any onlookers, it looked like they were speaking quietly, when really, they sat in silence, Abbee just trying to savor the moment of rest from people offering condolences, asking her what she will do, and saying Tyler is too young to look after her.

As they sat, Abbee eventually spoke up, curious to hear an answer about something she had been wondering.

“Alyssa, if you don’t mind me asking, what happened to Jon’s parents?” Abbee asked. “He mentioned losing them at my age, but never mentioned them before… I guess I didn’t want to say something to him that may bring up bad memories…”

“You really should think about yourself for once…” Alyssa chuckled. “I will tell you, because I think Jon would have at some point or other if he came anyway, but keep this between us.”

Abbee leaned in.

“Jon’s parents stayed together and married when they really should have broken up, because he was going to be coming into the picture. They thought it for the best, but really, being married to someone you don’t actually love comes with a cost,” Alyssa explained. “His dad relied on alcohol, and eventually heavier stuff to get by, both emotionally and eventually financially, and was abusive towards his wife and son when he was affected by it. His mum on the other hand refused to believe there was anything wrong, and convinced herself they were a normal, happy family. Jon isn’t as worried about it now, but the reason he has gone to such effort to look the way he does the last few years is to hide the physical scars he has from this.”

“He shouldn’t feel ashamed…” Abbee replied softly. “It’s not his fault…”

“He wasn’t hiding them out of shame,” Alyssa explained. “When he was fourteen, his dad's mistakes caught up with them, and his mum was killed because of that, and his dad was arrested and put in jail. Jon woke up that night to the sound of gunshots, and was taken from the house by the police…”

“S**t…” Abbee said, surprising Alyssa, as she was the one who tended to have the best language out of all the teens Jon was supervising this summer.

“Jon was hiding his scars, and changing his appearance because he wanted to compete, but didn’t want his dad to find him if he was on TV or in the news. Legally speaking, his name isn’t Jon Drake. Jonathan is his middle name, and until he married he used a pseudonym. Then he took my name socially when we married,” Alyssa explained. “In recent years, he has moved past his fear of his dad finding him, and let these things go a bit. But after over ten years of being Jon, and everyone knowing him as Jon Drake, he is happy to be him. That’s what Jon meant when he said he lost his parents.”

“Has Jon seen his dad since?” Abbee asked.

“Once,” Alyssa explained. “When we found out I was pregnant with Lili, he went and visited his dad for the first time since that night. He didn’t want our child to grow up running from Jon’s past, and knew he had to face him. He wasn’t ready to forgive, but if it looked like his dad had actually made some sort of decent progress, he was ready to try and take baby steps to repairing that bridge.”

“And had he?”

“It’s hard to say,” Alyssa explained. “He had been sober for years at that point, granted that is easier behind bars, but Jon couldn’t tell whether he felt remorse for what he had put Jon and his mother through. They sat in near silence, and Jon wasn’t sure whether that silence was out of guilt or whether he just didn’t care…”

Abbee looked around, realizing she had spent too long talking with Alyssa. Whilst she had lost her dad, everyone was here because they had lost someone they cared enough about to make the trip to Goldenrod to see off.

“I’d better go talk to a few more people,” she replied. “But thanks. I really do appreciate this. All of it.”

Alyssa nodded, lifting her hand off Abbee’s shoulder, before Abbee got up, and began walking into the crowd of people. It didn’t take too long before she was approached by someone, a man a few years older than her dad, who seemed slightly familiar, however she couldn’t place a name.

“Abbee, I’m so sorry for your loss,” The man said, holding out his hand. “We didn’t find the time to catch up in recent years, but I never considered a client as much of a friend as I did Richard…”

“Thank you,” Abbee replied politely. “Forgive my rudeness, but I am not sure we’ve met?”

“We have, but it was when your dad was still competing about ten years ago. You’ve grown a lot since then,” the man replied. “Thomas Hill. I was your fathers agent when he was competing full time.”

Abbee recognized the name, realizing where she knew him. He was right, Thomas had come around for dinner on a regular basis, even though he was hired by her Dad to help with booking tournaments and PR events.

“Yeah, I remember now,” Abbee said. “I’m sure he’d be glad to know you thought so highly of your friendship.”

Thomas smiled.

“You’ve inherited his way with words,” Thomas said with a chuckle. “You’d do just as well as he did if you decided to compete professionally. One of the last things he said to me was to watch the live stream you were battling in, and I was impressed. Do you think you will follow in his footsteps?”

“I don’t know to be honest,” Abbee replied, slightly surprised at how much she was actually enjoying this conversation. “It’s an option, and I do love battling, but I am not sure what my own calling is, and whether it is battling like he did, or something else entirely…”

“That is completely fair, and I think he’d want you to find your own path,” Thomas said. “I can dream though, the daughter of Richard Strauss taking the world by storm. I completely understand his reasons for deciding to retire, but the battling world was different without him in it.”

Before Abbee could ask what he meant, Thomas checked his watch.

“I’m sorry, I am unable to stay any longer,” Thomas said, before removing a business card from his pocket and handing it to her. “If you did want to hear more about your dad, or are considering following in his footsteps, feel free to call anytime.”

Abbee thanked him as he left, though with more questions than answers. She was only five years old when he retired. He had children somewhat late in life, however still retired quite young, and Abbee had never really known quite why. She was too young to understand that at the time, and by the time she was old enough, the thought never crossed her mind.

Before she could dwell on it too long, the persistent great aunt that Alyssa bought Abbee time from came over, and she was back into condolence accepting mode…

It was hours before the last guest said their farewells, offered their final condolences, and left the house, leaving Abbee exhausted. As she looked around the empty room, there was food left on platters, paper plates overflowing from rubbish bins, and empty glasses on tables. She began tidying up, gathering the empty glasses to take to the kitchen, where Alyssa had been on the phone to Jon. She had hung up as Abbee walked in, noticing the glasses she carried.

“Let me handle the clean-up,” Alyssa said, as she opened the dishwasher.

“No, Tyler and I can help…” Abbee began.

“You have been drilled by relatives and condolence-givers all day, and I’ll bet you are both exhausted. Meanwhile I have just caught up with Cynthia most of the afternoon, and answered the whole 'where do you fit in to this' question from a few nosy people a couple of times,” Alyssa said, before lowering her voice. “You said yourself you and Tyler aren’t close. Take this opportunity to see if you can understand each other a bit better…”

Whilst Abbee felt terrible having Alyssa at their house as a guest, with her doing more work than if she were at home, she raised a valid point. The next three years, Tyler was her guardian, and the only immediate family she had. Three years can be a long time.

“Thanks…” Abbee said. “For everything. You’ve been a saint…”

“It’s my pleasure.”

Abbee left, finding Tyler laying down on a couch in the lounge. As he saw her approaching, he sat up slightly, making space for her to sit down. She half crashed onto the couch, equally exhausted.

“That’s the funeral over…” Tyler said, neither in a positive nor negative implication.

“That it is…” Abbee asked. “Did they harass you as much as they harassed me?”

“Define harass…” Tyler explained. “I stopped counting how many people offered for us to live with them, because we are apparently too young to be living alone.”

“Anyone worth taking the offer up on?” Abbee asked sarcastically.

“Mostly relatives that I didn’t know existed, or would probably leave us in this position again by the time you’re eighteen…” Tyler retorted bitterly, before realizing the joke lacked a little tact. “Sorry, I shouldn’t say that…”

“You aren’t exactly wrong,” Abbee replied. “Us living in this empty house with nobody else isn’t ideal, but I’d prefer that to living with a stranger…”

“Yeah…” Tyler said quietly. There was an awkward silence, as Abbee tried to think of what to say, before settling for the simplest alternative.

“I’m sorry…” she said quietly.

“What for?” Tyler asked, somewhat confused.

“You’re a battler like Dad, in his prime, yet now you’re stuck looking after your little sister…” Abbee explained. “You won’t be able to compete in other regions, or even too far from here in Johto. You’re giving up the next three years of your career to look after me…”

Tyler sat up properly, thinking over what Abbee had just said. It was all stuff he had avoided thinking about. Whilst he was nowhere near his father’s level of fame, he was still an aspiring battler, making a name for himself, and Abbee was right. He will be heavily restricted the next three years. Maybe once she is seventeen or so, and it’s okay to leave her alone for a weekend, however any earlier, or any longer than that, and it will cause people to question whether he is fit to be her guardian, and if she is being neglected. She might end up having to live somewhere else. And three years is a long time to be out of the spotlight.

“I won’t try and tell you you’re wrong. You’re too smart for that,” Tyler said quietly. “My life is going to be drastically different while you’re still a minor. Maybe things will be normal for me battling-wise once you’re an adult, but I don’t know, and it does scare me a bit…”

Abbee tensed hearing that. She wasn’t sure how she felt.

“But, I’m not looking at it that way,” Tyler said, surprising her slightly.

“I know that I haven’t been around for you much. I took it pretty hard when Mum died, and being here, constantly being reminded of what we lost, just hurt. So the first chance I took, I left, and tried to run away from this place,” Tyler said. “And now, you’re growing up, and I realized as I watched the live-stream with Dad, I didn’t even know which Pokemon you had, or just how good you were of a battler. As your brother, I knew almost nothing about you…”

Abbee was shocked to hear Tyler say this. He had been closed off to everyone since their Mum died, and this sort of openness was unusual, and probably very difficult for him.

“I’m looking at the next three years as a chance to make up for lost time, and get to know my sister the way I should,” Tyler finished. “She’s all I have now, and my career can wait for that…”

Abbee was surprised at herself when she found herself hugging him. Whilst she still wasn’t looking forward to the pair of them living alone in this big empty house, she did feel a lot better about it.

“What about you?” Tyler asked. “You still have high-school, but what will you do when you graduate?”

“I honestly don’t know…” Abbee replied. “It’s been on my mind a lot since Dad died, now knowing he won’t be there for whatever I do…”

“Well, based on that stream, I think if you decided to compete professionally, you would be pretty successful.”

As Tyler said this, Abbee remembered the conversation with Thomas she had earlier that day.

“Tyler, I was wondering something…” Abbee asked, leaving her brother slightly confused at what would follow. “Do you know why Dad retired? I just remember that he did, but didn’t really understand why. I never thought to ask until someone mentioned it today…”

“Thomas?” Tyler asked. “I saw the pair of you talking. Dad really liked him.”

“Yeah.”

Tyler went quiet, as he thought about how best to say it.

“He did it for us…” Tyler replied.

“Mum got sick ages before they told us. They only told us when they realized it was terminal,” Tyler explained. “I only found this out in the last few years.”

Abbee felt her heart sink at the thought of her parents having to keep that secret.

“Remember how when Dad left Johto to go compete, it was just Mum, and she’d let us stay up late, and have extra dessert?” Tyler asked.

“Yeah, I remember that,” Abbee replied. “We loved Dad, but also liked it when he’d go away for a night or two because of that…”

“Dad knew he couldn’t compete and leave his sick wife to look after their kids. And he also knew that if Mum didn’t make it, he wouldn’t have a say in how he stepped out of the spotlight,” Tyler explained. “He retired as soon as they found out Mum was sick, so he could take over essentially raising us…”

Abbee felt her heart sink hearing this. She knew their father loved battling, and when the pair of them both began battling themselves, he was ecstatic. And now she realized that the reason he stopped doing something he loved as much as he did was for their sake. Suddenly all of the enthusiasm and encouragement for her own battling started to make sense. Even the fact he turned down the position of Indigo Champion after Lance was arrested.

Abbee began to tear up with the revelation. Their father was near the top by the time he retired, but he had a lot higher he could have flown.

“I didn’t know…” Abbee sobbed. “He gave up his dreams for us…”

Tyler pulled her in close, looking directly forward, to try and hide the tears he was shedding from Abbee.

“I know. But now that things have changed, I think I understand what he was thinking a bit better,” Tyler said quietly. “He didn’t see it as giving up his dreams. He was getting the time and opportunities to spend his years with his kids…”

Abbee thought to herself about what she had just heard.

“Everyone keeps asking me if I will follow in his footsteps, and compete like he did. And until now, I didn’t know…” Abbee explained, wiping the tears from her face. “But now, I want to carry on his legacy. His career ended for our sake. So I want to make sure that everyone knows who he is, and what sort of man he was…”

“He’d never admit it, because he wanted you to do what you wanted with life…” Tyler began. “But I think he’d just about cry tears of joy if he heard you say that…”

“It must run in the family,” Abbee said through tears of her own, not even seconds after drying her eyes…

“So what are you doing now?”

Abbee went quiet. She hadn’t spoken to Tyler about going back to Hoenn for the rest of the summer.

“Truth is, I was thinking of finishing my summer at the Eon Academy,” Abbee explained. “I left very suddenly, and don’t want this to potentially be the last time I see them.”

Tyler thought over what Abbee said.

“I think you should go back as well.”

“Wait, really?” Abbee asked, shocked. “You said yourself how much being here after Mum died hurt, and now Dad is gone too, do you really want me to leave you alone here?”

“I won’t stay here until you come back,” Tyler explained. “Dad retired before he really had to so he could leave on his own terms. If I am going to take a hiatus myself, the rest of the summer should be enough for me to do that on my terms.”

“Besides, when we watched the stream, Dad kept saying how much fun you were having, and right now, I think being there would do you good,” Tyler said. “I don’t know Jon myself, but Alyssa has been a god-send the last few days, and I trust her to make sure you’re doing okay until you come home. Besides, a bit of time for me to figure out how exactly to do this whole guardian thing before I actually gotta do it would help a lot…”

“Alyssa is a saint…” Abbee said chuckling. “I see why Jon is smitten with her.”

Tyler laughed, as Abbee soon joined in. Alyssa could hear the conversation and laughter from the next room over as she tidied, and thanked whatever God happened to be watching them, that these two could find reason to smile given their circumstances…