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The warmth in the room makes it difficult to open my eyelids. Not even the scream in the background and the following babble of voices can shake the peace inside me. Still, the background noise gets louder with every breath I take and when I recognise Lillie's stuttering, I sit upright all at once.

My heart races and although the surroundings are a terrible blur in front of me at first, in the next breath, a fairly sharp-eyed woman comes to the fore.

“You definitely crave trouble.” Her voice is loud and a little pointy and it takes me a while to recognise her. It’s the woman from the harbour.

A Poké Ball lies between her fingers, still in its transport form, and the pressed-together lips hint she’s reluctant to fight in the pantry. Yet it unfolds in the next moment and my breath catches.

Systematically, I grab Zorua’s ball and slide to my knees so the other two finally notice me.

“Domino!” Lillie's relief ripples through the room, but she can’t draw my attention in her direction. Instead, my eyes linger on the woman.

The uniform on her body gives her the aura that she is probably a good deal older than me. The shades of grey, the black skirt and the purple accents have the charm of an adult at work. However, she also has a sparkle in her eyes that makes her look younger.

“We’re not here to provoke trouble,” I finally try. A fight in such a confined space would only cause damage. We both know that.

“You should have thought of that before you snuck on board!”

“We only want to get to the next island ... or, if possible, to a completely different place, far away from Alola.”

“And you think I’ll just accept that?” She doesn’t know what to do with herself. Her legs make her stumble back two steps and the ball threatens to slip out of her hand, so I force myself to my feet in a flash.

My breath catches in my throat as I prepare to take on this woman – when the hasty movements of another enter the room.

“Conia, pull yourself together.” He’s not loud, not dominant, and yet there’s a harshness in his voice that makes me lower the ball too.

“But... Amethio, sir...” Although Conia obeys, the protest doesn’t leave her. “These two are intruders.”

“I realise that.” Violet eyes settle on me, and no words are needed to know, he remembers. My desire for escape and adventure has bothered him before, and though I wanted to avoid a moment like this, we’re face to face again.

It’s obvious that I owe him an explanation. Still, a sigh escapes me as I rub the sleep from my eyes and sort out my adrenaline-fuelled thoughts first.

“I know there’s no room for us on this ship, but I’m asking once again to come with you,” I begin slowly. “Alola is ... not my final destination and ... I would like to explore the world – perhaps as a professor.” My inner desires linger on this group’s quest. On a being who feels the same urge for freedom as I do. “Besides ... this Rayquaza ... I’d like to see it again.”

It’s a short-term idea, but a warming thought. This Pokémon has mesmerised me with the sight of it. Its voice, its search, all these things have left me with familiar feelings. I would like to see if it could find what it was looking for.

“My answer remains unchanged,” he replies. His casual demeanour is stoic and everything in me wants to show him I am not to be underestimated. However, a fight remains impractical. “There’s no room for you here.”

“Not even if it can give you an advantage?” No matter how insane I sound, it’s worth a try.

“What do you mean?”

“I can hear Rayquaza when it’s nearby.” I tap my temple briefly. “Its voice is in my head. That’s true for ... some special Pokémon, it seems.”

At least that’s what I could summarise. Tapu Koko's voice was audible, as was Rayquaza’s. There’s also Nebby, whose words reach me as it flies towards freedom.

“You ... can hear them?” It’s Conia who interjects, looking at me as if I’d sold the Holy Grail at a flea market for Poké Beans. “You’re lying! That’s not possible.”

I would love to prove her wrong, but I have no plan how. There’s no way to demonstrate that I can hear Pokémon. I could tell them God knows what, and all they’re left with is blind faith.

In the end, the revelation of my strange ability feels worse than expected. Stupid. Like something you say, only to want to unsay it again in the next few seconds. Still, I put my hands on my hips and jut my chin. I’m not a liar and letting the tight feeling in my chest take centre stage is out of the question.

“We’ll take her with us.” In the end, it’s Amethio who decides, leaving Conia to the left with a brief gasp. “I’ll pass your request on to my Master. We’ll see what happens after that.”

“Sir, hearing the voices of some Pokémon ... can there be any truth to it?”

“I don’t know,” he replies, “but it would be dangerous to let an ability like that go.”

I breathe a barely perceptible sigh of relief. Maybe they’ll decide to believe me. I hardly know anything about this ability myself. The only thing my mind can conjure up are hazy childhood images. They are as formless as everything since my father decided moving to Alola. I can’t even remember my years in Unova. Everything forms a shapeless mush that makes my shoulders heavy.

The thought chokes my throat all at once and although I told myself before Alola that the past doesn’t matter, there are only tiny elements that I can remember.

There’s my father and all the important information about him. Ying, which I was given at some point when I was little. The names of the places we lived and faint background noise, like the normal school facility without Pokémon that I went to. Behind that, information that I’ve painstakingly scraped together.

I can’t remember any friends or a single day I spent in these places. It’s all like a fever dream that I only woke up from after we were on the ship to Alola.

“Hey, are you even listening?” Without further ado, Conia moves into the picture and snaps me out of my thoughts. Behind her former refusal lies only obedience.

“I... Yes... I was just in thought.” I wave it off before looking round. Amethio is no longer there.

“Well then. I’ll take you both to your room. You can change there, rest ... wait until we call you.” She sighs. “And don’t think we’re going to let you off so easily.”

Lillie doesn’t say a word and I only manage a weary nod. A bed sounds good and changing has its charms. My white trousers are actually yellow from all the pollen from the sea of flowers and part of me just wants to freshen up.

So we follow Conia from the pantry up the corridor to a door that leads to the top of the airship. The group has set up a kind of living room here, making the surroundings feel much warmer. The two chocolate-brown sofas, the armchair and the matching table are in the centre of the room. Underneath is a tasteful carpet. The rest of the room is furnished with cupboards and shelves filled with tableware and other odds and ends.

The sight captivates me a little before Conia strolls through another door on the same side, much further to the right. Once again we end up in a bare corridor, but the doors have meaning.

“This is where our admin sleeps,” she points to the first, closed doorway. Then to the second and third. “Next to it is Zir and the one after that leads to my room.”

She only pauses in front of the fourth and penultimate one. “This one is yours.”

She opens the doorway and as soon as Lillie and I have entered, the heavy steel falls back into the lock. Conia leaves us alone, and it’s a moment when Lillie puts a hand on her chest and sighs.

“I thought they were going to throw us overboard,” she begins slowly. “That was ... scary...”

While I let her know with a curt hum that I more or less agree with the thought, I push my way across the room. There’s a large bed, a desk and chair and a few empty shelves. There is also a door leading into a tiny bathroom. The toilet is just one step away from the washbasin and is also adjacent to the shower. It’s cramped, but it’s inviting.

“I’m ... going to take a quick shower, yeah?” I glance briefly at Lillie, who has already settled down on the bed.

She gives me an uncertain smile. “Okay.”

I disappear behind the door with my things in a flash and put my backpack down on the toilet seat. It doesn’t take long to jump under the shower and slipping into fresh clothes is a great feeling. I put the dirty clothes in a plastic bag and stow them in my backpack again.

Back in the room, I waft cool air at myself before landing on the bed next to her and dropping the backpack on the floor. Lillie's bag next to it is open, but Nebby is asleep.

“You’ll have to be careful it doesn’t fall off board while we’re here.” I purse my lips. “Otherwise, I’ll have to hope Coro can fly well.”

“Coro?” Big green eyes look at me.

“Ah... My Pikipek.” I lean back in thought. “It stood in for me when Zorua was poisoned during the fighting at the school. And on my escape, I faced two idiots from some twisted gang.”

“You fought?” Her eyes widen and I can’t help but laugh and tap my upper arm.

“I showed them who’s in charge.” My posture relaxes again. “The man I helped gave me Raya, a Growlithe, to take with me. So there are four of us now.”

“Have you scanned them with your Rotom yet?”

“No, is that important?”

“As well as the usual information, it can also tell you what kind of mind your Pokémon has.” Lillie raises a finger instructively. “The Rotom can also scan your Pokémon to find out which attacks it knows.”

Silence falls for a moment after her little speech and the sudden shame that overcomes her makes her wave it off. “Well... I-it’s not exactly unimportant.”

She’s not wrong. Knowing what my Pokémon can and can’t do is one thing that can make my journey easier. So I dig out my three balls and let my companions out. The room is filled with happy giggles, Zorua stretches out in her usual form and Growlithe threatens to fall asleep sitting down. My focus shifts to Coro.

“Pikipek. Woodpecker Pokémon. Normal/Flying-type Pokémon. It pecks into a tree sixteen times a second to make holes in the wood where it can store its food or build a nest. It later shoots the seeds from its berries out of its beak as ammunition. You can recognise its mood by its pecking rhythm.”

“So it must have really strong neck muscles,” Lillie adds as she moves closer to me. The smell of fresh flowers settles in my nose. “And look, it’s only twenty-five centimetres tall.”

“Five less than I estimated,” I reply.

“And therefore smaller than average,” the blonde adds, before wiping a finger across the display and showing me what special features Coro has.

In addition to the fact it doesn’t lose any accuracy thanks to its keen eye, it can execute attacks that are used multiple times one hundred per cent. Not that I know what that means, but it makes a good impression. Apart from that, it tends to steal – and it’s male.

“It also has the attacks Peck, Echoed Voice, Supersonic, and Growl,” I read out. It seems to be young. Older Pokémon certainly have better attacks – at least I want to hold on to this belief until I’m convinced otherwise.

Shortly afterwards, I turn my attention to Ying and Raya to find out the most important details. Neither of them excels at anything, but getting to know their skills on the sidelines and knowing what I can rely on gives me new confidence.

“But why only four attacks?” This time it’s Lillie who asks, and deep in my mind a memory emerges that I can’t place. The woman’s voice that gently touches my ears is familiar and strange at the same time. Yet her words make sense.

“Because they simply can’t remember. Of course, they could learn five or six attacks, but if it gets too much, they just end up confused or have to think too long. In a battle, it’s impractical if the Pokémon doesn’t immediately remember its attack and has to think about it first,” I explain. It’s almost astonishing what’s floating around in the deepest corners of my brain. It seems as if someone once took the trouble to introduce me to the world of Pokémon.

Lillie, meanwhile, nods briefly before taking her distance again and kneading her hands. She lets her green eyes wander around the room for a moment before plucking up the courage to ask another question. “You can understand Nebby?”

“I can.” I lower my eyes. “Even if it often has nothing more to say than ‘free’.”

“Since when can you understand Pokémon? Is that ... like telepathy?”

I grimace at the thought of them deliberately forcing these words into my brain, but then shake my head with a smile. “I don’t know since when. I’d say recently, but ... it could be longer. And it’s only special Pokémon. Rayquaza, for example. And Nebby. It’s like they just talk and when I’m around, I can hear it.”

“I see...” Lillie also lowers her head. “If Nebby is ever unhappy about something, will you tell me?”

“I will.”

She sighs. “I wish I could understand Pokémon that way, too.”

I doubt it, but I don’t want to rob her of the beautiful fantasy behind it, so I stay quiet. Her reverie doesn’t last long, however, before a knock on the door freezes the mood in the room and we both wait. We don’t have to invite our visitor in. He simply takes the liberty.

Immediately afterwards, a guy stands in the frame who looks like he’s twice my age. His short, black hair is adorned with an olive-coloured mohawk that doesn’t quite want to stand up straight, and the uniform on his body makes him look like an employee, just like Conia.

“Enough lazing around!” He purses his lips briefly as he scrutinises us. “Come to breakfast.”

Breakfast sounds fantastic, especially after a start like this. My hair is almost dry and Lillie can’t even react as quickly as I jump up. It takes her a moment to push herself off the bed and be the last to follow.

On the way to the dining room, for which they use the elegant lounge, the stranger introduces himself as Zir. A guy who is proud of his position and accepts my decision to join him with a broad smile. We settle down on the sofa together. Lillie takes a seat next to me. Zir on the opposite side.

Breakfast is served a little later by Conia, who is now only half as hostile as she was at the beginning. Her eyes remain watchful, but she has no harsh words to spare. “If you don’t like something, leave it.”

“You’re making the food for everyone here?” I raise my eyebrows briefly as I grab a slice of sandwich. The ham on it smells of herbs.

Conia, however, nods as she puts her hands on her hips and juts her chin. “Balanced meals are the most important thing when you’re out exploring and my cooking skills are impressive!”

Her words alone make me look forward to lunch – provided we’re not thrown overboard by then. But when Amethio enters, the answer is silence. Presumably, there is no decision yet, so silence is all he can offer us.

While he is being poured a cup of tea, breakfast really begins. Chansey eggs are spread on spoons, sandwiches and forks. Tomatoes are a delight on the tongue and the ham turns out to be Lechonk.

“I-I... A-Also... What do you do in your organisation?” Eventually, Lillie starts a conversation that immediately catches Conia’s attention.

“Ah... It’s not usual for you to meet travelling explorers, is it?”

“I can’t say that it is!” Lillie immediately raises her hands and waves it off. “I haven’t been here long.”

“Neither have I,” I add. “Only for a few days, which can be counted on two hands.”

“Where are you from?” Zir interjects. The original question slips into the background for a moment.

“From ... a small island ... near Alola.”

“Johto.”

We answer at the same time before we look at each other and a giggle escapes us both. She doesn’t seem like someone whose parents are from around here, but I know what it’s like to seem out of place.

“That’s pretty far away,” Zir states in response to my answer. Then he puffs out his chest as if to emphasise how much he knows about distance. “We come from all over,” he continues. “We operate under the Explorers.”

“You could say we are there to research events and issues in the Pokémon world,” adds Conia.

“How do such organisations finance these searches? It must be quite expensive.” Some cheese lands on my tongue.

“Trade,” Conia explains. “Trade in unusual finds such as valuable crystals and unknown evolution stones. Plus government support when we make a discovery.”

Becoming part of all this sounds like a little dream of freedom that I’ve been longing for forever. It’s the one thing that has stayed with me clearly and distinctly since I was a child. The Explorers have everything I want. Discovering the world is exactly what it takes to satisfy a longing for faraway places.

“Perhaps being a professor in this field is actually just the right thing for me. A professor of the Explorers...” I can’t help but dwell on the thought.

“You’re really interested in research?” Conia tilts her head briefly. “I would have expected this to be an excuse.”

“No, not an excuse.” I wave it off. “I want to be free and, as a professor, I can discover the entire world. There’s hardly anything better than that, is there?”

“I like your drive!” Zir gives me an emphatic nod. It seems like I’m the centre of all this, if only for a moment, and it feels good to talk freely about these topics. My father has never listened to me.

“I wouldn’t mind helping you with a teaching task or two,” Conia adds, her eyes slightly averted. Neither of us wants to apologise. But the peace between us needs no further words. “And our admin knows a few things too!”

As she turns expectantly in Amethio’s direction, he takes a sip of his tea. His thoughts are elsewhere and yet he looks at Conia for a moment. “It doesn’t matter.”