Akemi and I walked through Ecruteak City with our hands intertwined. Even if a few days had passed since we confessed our feelings for each other at the Tin Tower, it was still comforting to know that she felt the same way about me. That I wasn't the weird one. I didn't think the relief would ever wear off.

To be honest, until I met Akemi, I had never considered that I might be gay. Sure, I had always looked at both my male and female peers in the same way, and I crushed on pop stars of both genders. Maybe that meant I was bi. I was never sure since my mind had always been too focused on studies to even think of such things.

We stopped by a cafe to grab sandwiches for lunch. As we conversed, it felt different. Closer. It wasn't like it was a date or anything, but the aura around us had changed. We sat and ate as we chit-chatted like we usually did. Mundane conversations cropped up about the weather, Pokémon species, and even the area around us. However, to me, they were far from mundane. They felt magical.

People around us must have noticed the way we talked too. They would smile at us, and some would make comments like, "How cute." And, now that I thought about it more in depth, people had looked at us like that since Goldenrod City. It made me laugh to myself a little. How long had we appeared as lesbian lovers to others?

The sandwich was delectable on my tongue. It wasn't anything special, just a turkey club. As I looked up from my sandwich, I noticed a pleased look on Akemi's face. Her cheeks were stuffed—probably resembling what I looked like at the moment too—and her eyes shined. I loved the way that they shined so much. The dark brown hues complemented the lighter shades of the deep brown.

"So," Akemi began through a mouthful of food. She swallowed before continuing. "I was thinking we hit up the Lake of Rage next. It's a cool spot to see."

"Any rare species?" I asked.

"Probably," she said while shrugging. Her jacket swished with her movements. "I'm not really sure, but it's a cool sightseeing place that you need to see while you're here."

"Alright, sounds good to me," I said. Then, I said the cheesiest thing I had ever said. "So long as I'm with you, I'm happy with wherever we go."

Akemi's cheeks grew red to match my own hot, flushed sensation. She took a sip of her water before responding. "That is the dorkiest thing I've ever heard."

I put my hands up. "I'm just saying." I really didn't know what I was doing, but I felt like I was doing something right based on her reaction.

TV shows had always made flirting look so easy. Just now, however, I realized how dumb it sounded in real life. This was a moment that would live with me for a few years, haunting my memories as a moment filled with awkward laughter and cringing.

"Well, the feeling is mutual," Akemi responded. Relief washed over me.

She stood, placing her napkin on her empty plate. "I think we should go tell my sister that we're leaving soon. She can help us refresh our supplies and see us off when we leave in a few days."

"Alright, sounds good to me," I said as I followed suit with my own napkin and plate.

The second we passed through the restaurant doors, our hands intertwined once more. It was such a minute gesture, but it filled me with warmth. I didn't know a relationship could be this rewarding, this soothing. It filled me with a fuzzy feeling, like a special brand of happiness.

As we approached Akemi's apartment building, the front door swung open. I jumped a little as Asami stood beyond the door with a smug look on her face. How did she know we were coming? There weren't any windows facing the direction we were coming from.

"I knew it," she said.

"Sis," Akemi hissed. I stood there confused.

"I knew you liked her. It was so obvious, the way you talked about her on the Pokégear," Asami said. "I'm glad you finally got one that likes you back."

I looked over to Akemi whose face matched the color of a Poké Ball. "That's enough. Let's go inside."

She did so in a much faster pace than we had been walking at. We waked up to their apartment together in silence. Akemi's stomping feet echoed in the stairwell around us. When we reached their apartment, Akemi was already in her room. Asami moved like water to the living room and placed herself down on the couch. I could hear a news report in the background. I didn't tune in on what it was saying.

I stood by myself in the front room. I looked around from picture to picture, not really focusing on any one of them in particular. Most of them featured Akemi and Asami, but some had their mother too. Slowly, I approached the few frames that had all three women in the photograph.

Most of the pictures were faded, and some even looked like they had been tapped together after being torn apart. I picked up one of them from a small half table and examined it. Their mother looked similar to them, but her face seemed exasperated. Like a woman who hadn't known sleep in years.

The flooring to my right creaked, and I quickly placed the picture in its original location. My instincts told me that I wasn't supposed to be looking at it. I took a few paces back to where I imagined I was originally. Glancing down the hallway, I saw Akemi coming toward me in a different outfit. She wore simple jeans and a blue t-shirt with a logo on it. It was similar to what I wore. Trainers like us were fans of simple outfits.

"Hey sis, can you help us get packed for tomorrow?" she yelled across the room.

"Where are you going? You've only been here for a week," Asami inquired.

"Yeah, so?" Akemi asked. She moved over to sit on the couch next to her sister. The way both of them sat made it hard to believe they were related. Akemi slouched and took up two cushions, while her sister sat regally on her one cushion. "We have Pokémon to catch, there isn't time to wait around. Plus, I want to show Phoebe the Lake of Rage."

"I thought you said that place was a disappointment when you went there the first time," Asami asked. She side eyed her sister as she spoke. "Ethan caught the red Gyarados, the 'only reason' you went there in the first place."

"Because there are things there the Phoebe might want to see." Akemi rolled her eyes. I noted the hesitation in her voice.

Asami held up her pointer finger and waggled it in the air. "Because you want to go to a cute date location with Phoebe." I watched Akemi's face blush. Asami looked away from the TV to her sister. "You don't blush like that normally. I'm right aren't I?"

"Just help us put our stuff together so we can leave," Akemi demanded.

Asami chuckled. "You're so predictable, sis. I don't even need Ho-Oh's foresight to help me."

"Oh Ho-Oh, would you give it a rest!" Akemi shouted. She jumped to her feet, stomping one of them for effect.

Asami recoiled slightly at Akemi's outburst. Asami's eyes flickered from the TV to Akemi then back to the TV. She shook her head. "I'm happy for you, I really am." Her tone was softer now. All sense of teasing was gone. "I know how hard this has been for you. So, honestly, I'm glad you got to go on another adventure and that you told her how you feel."

"That's a lie. You don't know how hard it was," Akemi fumed back.

"Mom left both of us when I backed you up. Keep that in mind."

I shifted on my feet. The tension in the air was thick enough to cut with a knife. I looked to the TV for relief. Thankfully, the news was still playing. I quickly recognized the woman on the screen with her dark skin and popping red suit. It was Paloma, the reporter that began my conversation with Professor Oak about Johto for me. Red and blue lights flashed behind her. Yellow tape crossed off an area of what seemed to be the beach at an enormous lake.

"This just in, a report of thugs dressed as Team Rocket have appeared at the Lake of Rage. Police are on the scene, but the thugs threaten the surrounding area with a detonator any time someone closes in on them. The grunts are demanding cash in exchange for everyone's safety. Police are claiming it's a bluff at this point, but they haven't dared to approach the perpetrators either."

Asami and Akemi must have noticed the report too. I saw the volume setting appear on the TV, and the virtual green bar slid further up to the right. I turned to see Asami leaning in closer, and Akemi took a seat next to her once more.

Akemi scooted away from the center of the couch a bit before patting the newly opened space next to her. I took a seat as Paloma continued talking. "We have a new development on the situation. The famous Pokémon trainer Ethan is on the scene. The seventeen-year-old, one of the kids hired by Professor Elm to complete the Johto Pokédex, seems to have taken a break from his League challenge to assist the police."

Paloma continued talking, but I was distracted from her words by Akemi rising to her feet again. She walked away from the couch before doing a slow spin on her heel to face us.

"Well, it seems that two experience trainers are needed at the Lake of Rage," Akemi said with a weird inflection to her tone.

Asami didn't look away from the TV. "Uh huh," she muttered. "Because Ethan can't take care of it by himself."

"Nope, no he can't," Akemi responded. "Phoebe, we should get going before the situation gets any further out of control," she said to me now. She tugged on my arm, pulling off of the couch.

"Bye, Asami," I said as I let Akemi force me down the hallway.

"Bye, Phoebe," Asami said with a wave of her hand.

For the next few minutes, Akemi and I stormed the house for supplies. I restocked on first aid, filling my bag's kit with essentials. I also nabbed some potions for my Pokémon with Akemi's permission. She packed snacks into her bag, handing me a three baggies full of treats for my backpack.

"Alright, we're off," Akemi announced. "Watch for us on the news."

"Will do, lovebirds!" she teased.

"Asami!" Akemi scolded. "We've only been dating for a few days. You can't tease us like that yet. This isn't even an official date."

Asami cut her sister off. "Nope, it's official. I'm saying it's official. Go have fun on your little date."

I laughed as I tugged on Akemi's arm. "Come on, let's get out of here."

She allowed me to pull her along as she continued to deadpan at her sister. It was amazing that those two hadn't killed each other yet. They were constantly getting on the other's nerves. I swung my backpack over my shoulder as I approached the door. I snapped Akemi out of her daze by tossing her bag at her. She fumbled a bit, but she ended up with the bag in hand.

I counted the balls that lined my right strap. All six were accounted for as well as the Great Ball on the left strap. I swiped my Pokédex over the ball for a status update. It returned a positive reading with a full health bar. No status conditions plagued Mewtwo either. Where did he disappear to these past few days?

"Let's go," Akemi said.

I followed her down the stairs and out the door into the street. She pulled a ball off of her belt and threw it as we burst through the front door.

"Noctowl, fly," she commanded. The flying-type materialized then hunched over so Akemi could climb onto his back.

"Pidgeot," I shouted. My own flying-type appeared and assumed a similar position. I was letting Charizard take a break in case I needed him at the lake. "Follow Akemi's Noctowl. Got it?" My Pokémon tweeted in response.

With two powerful gusts of wind, we were off. Once we were at a high enough altitude, we did a sharp one-eighty turn toward a hilly forest region. The lake laid on the horizon in front of us.

-----

"Move!" I shouted at the cameramen that were snapping photos of us.

We hadn't even landed yet, but they were already clicking away. My voice was drowned out by the wind, but the cameramen still jumped out of the way. Nothing speaks louder than the visual of two flying-types coming in for a dive bomb of a landing.

The bushes around us rustled violently with the wind from Pidgeot and Noctowl's wings. Even small trees almost bowed to the gusts of wind. The crowd jumped and shrieked at the spectacle. The cameramen, now realizing that they weren't in danger, turned to photograph us again. A trainer flying in on a Pokémon was nothing to bat an eye at. However, two trainers showing up at the same time within a few hundred feet of a crime scene was huge. It was especially huge when the people realized who we were.

It started as a whisper, I'm sure, from a kid that looked up to us. Months of other, more pressing news had flushed our names out of the system. Only die-hard trainers remembered. Now, our names rippled through the crowd. Akemi and Phoebe. I brushed my now knotted hair out of my face as we pushed our way through the crowd. Flying did not make for a glamorous look. Noctowl fluttered above Akemi, and Pidgeot moved behind me. I had to redo my hair every time either Pokémon flapped their wings as a warning to the crowd. I didn't mind, however, as it kept the masses at bay. They clawed and climbed over each other, trying to ask us an overwhelming number of questions. I ignored them all as I continued to push forward.

The police officers weren't as easily moved. They stood fast as we snaked our way through the crowd. I recalled Pidgeot, and Noctowl came to rest on Akemi's shoulder. The police looked straight ahead with their thousand-mile-stare as we came upon them.

"No one is allowed past this fence," the officer nearest to us said in a flat voice.

I looked down at the barricade fences that had been set up. To my left, I noticed the fence ended and yellow police line finished the rest of the barrier. Officers lined the fence with their arms out to their sides. They all stared ahead with the same blank expression.

"What about this line? Am I allowed past that?" I asked as I pushed through the crowd to the edge of the barricade. The temporary fences jingled as I brushed up against them to avoid the lurching reporters.

"Hey, no," the officer began. He stopped short of moving away from his post and instead turned to shout orders at someone else. "Don't let her get through."

I watched as new officers ran to meet me at the edge of the fence. They set into place with shields and batons. I felt Akemi grab my hand as I continued to push my way through the masses. She moved along with me, her Noctowl presumably in its ball again since I couldn't find it anymore.

"Step away from the barricade," one of the masked police officers commanded.

"Raiu," Akemi said simply. In a flash of lightning, Raikou emerged. The reporters jumped away frantically. The armored officers shifted on their feet too.

"Kazan," I said as I released Entei. It meant volcano in the native Johto tongue. It was also Flareon's original name according to Akemi.

At the emergence of Entei and Raikou, the policemen jumped back slightly. The line of shields shifted with them. Then, they returned to their aggressive stance in my face, the fence of thick plastic returning to its original position.

"Put the Pokémon away, and step away from the barricade," the same officer commanded again.

I didn't budge. I had to fight. My being itched for it. Especially if it was a fight against Team Rocket.

"This is your last warning," the officer began his command again. "Put the Pokémon away, and..."

He trailed off at the arrival of their squad's Jenny. She rested her hands on their shoulders, turning them away slightly. All the while, she stared me in the eyes with her piercing brown gaze. The shields retreated, but my unease only grew. I didn't realize I hadn't felt much fear until that point when the sensation flooded my entire being. Why did this woman intimidate me when the riot shields didn't?

"Phoebe?" she said. It wasn't meant to be terrifying, but my blood rushed cold through my veins at her singular word, my name.

"Who the hell are you?" I demanded. I clenched my fists and firmly set my jaw.

I watched as Raiu disappeared to my side, and I felt Akemi's hand on my shoulder. "Phoebe, respect." What happened to the woman who was ready to fight only moments ago?

"She doesn't mean to be rude, but I can see how you think that," the Jenny said to Akemi. The uniformed woman turned back to me now. A moment of silence ensued as she squared me up. "You don't respect authorities much, do you?" She tilted her head a little, narrowing her eyes a bit too.

I thought for a second about my words, choosing them carefully. "They have to earn it, first."

Another moment of silence passed; cameras provided the only interruption to the thick atmosphere developing between me and this chief officer.

"You're just like Philip, aren't you?" she said.

My entire facade fell at the mention of that name. I was a kid at a funeral again, and this woman was speaking about my father. She tried comforting me as I hugged the triangular flag that mom allowed me hold.

I felt tears form in my eyes at the mention of my dad; not angry tears, not anymore. Painful ones, from the fight that had happened only months ago. I couldn't think about him without thinking of the painful responsibility every adult that knew him placed on me.

"Wow, you've grown so much from the last time I saw you!" Jenny said, her serious demeanor dropping for a kind one now. "You had to have been about yay high." She held a hand up to her waist.

"Yeah, probably," I said. I dried my eyes with my hand before anyone noticed.

"It's good to see you again. Last time I did wasn't on the best terms. Sorry about your father, he was a good man," she said with remorse.

The words were meant to be polite, but they stung. I could never be as good as he was. Never. But I had to be, I had to prove that I was just as brilliant.

"It's alright, I don't remember much of him anyway," I lied. I remembered him taking me to school when Mom was too tired from the night shift. I remembered him picking me up and taking me to the park. I remember Mom complaining about me getting fat with all of the ice cream he got me from the truck down the street. I remembered.

"It seems like you're doing just fine on your own. A whole Pokédex completed by yourself? Not many people can say that they have done that. To be sixteen too..." she trailed off. "Yeah, you're going places kid. Your mother must be proud."

"She is. Thanks," I said. Her words brought my mood up slightly, reminding me that it was my accomplishments that made me who I am now. Not who I was related to like my mom wanted to believe. I was still a bit upset by her earlier statement, however.

"Anyway, you two have powerful Pokémon. I'm not sure what else I expected from Johto and Kanto's finest trainers," Jenny said, moving on from the past. "Those Team Rocket thugs have what they claim to be an Electrode bomb in their truck." She pointed at the situation in the distance. A pick-up truck sat on the beach with four balls sitting in the bed. I could only see the shiny white tops of the supposed Electrodes.

"Ethan is out there too, putting constant pressure on them. They can't diffuse it with them out there since they would die, but they can't run either with Ethan and a whole squad of officers there to catch them." Jenny turned to look at us again. "It's a stalemate, but I think you two could provide the turning point. Come with me, we need to talk in private." She glared at the cameras at her last sentence.

Akemi and I ducked under the police line, and the shielded officers let us pass through a tight slit in their formation. I heard their shields shuffle back into place as the camera crews surged forward, hoping to take advantage of the opportunity.

There's no need for this foolishness, a voice said in my mind. I didn't register it as the dangerous child I was supposed to be babysitting until he popped out in a blinding light.

Mewtwo floated forward at a surprisingly fast pace.

"Oh, hell no," I said. I began shoving my way through the crowd. I jumped over boxes and bags that were on the ground as I beelined toward my loose Pokémon.

It's my responsibility to stop them. Team Rocket is my mess to clean up, Mewtwo said. He didn't slow his pace to speak.

"No, it isn't, the police have this covered," I yelled. I couldn't tell if he heard me over the noise.

They can't be allowed to hurt anyone else. Let me handle this, he growled.

I was suddenly shoved back by an unseen force. The ground rushed up to meet the back of my head, and I felt things crackle and snap inside of my body upon impact. My mind spun as I slowly sat up from Mewtwo's attack.

"Asshole!" I shouted.

I stood up in time to see Mewtwo perform a similar move on Ethan and his Pokémon. The black-haired boy and his Typhlosion flew back sharply. The truck that was supposedly full of Electrodes crumpled under an awesome psychic power. I watched as a bunch of Dittos leaked their way out of the crunched mess that was once a car. One of them turned into an Electrode again, but it quickly reverted to its original form when it realized it was safe to slink away.

You heinous villains! Mewtwo screamed. By the startled reactions of the Team Rocket grunts and the people around me, I knew they heard him speaking too.

Immediately, the grunts dropped to their knees. Their terrified expressions betrayed their originally cool demeanor. I was able to take a good look at them now. Two men and one woman. They were probably no older than forty, maybe even thirty. Their uniforms looked sloppy, with a homemade touch to them. The "R" on each of their shirts were different sizes and they each wore a different type of hat; none of which were the official Team Rocket cap.

You're all just fakes, Mewtwo accused. You're all trying to imitate the real thing. Do you even know what Team Rocket did? All of their crimes against humans and Pokémon?

"We're so sorry. We're just tired of getting shoved around by society," the woman answered.

So, you wanted to bring back one of the most dangerous criminal syndicates to ever exist? For fun?

"No," one of the men answered. "We just wanted to use their name to try to get a ransom for holding the beach hostage. We're poor, and all of us recently lost our jobs. You don't understand how desperate we are. We're so sorry." He began to cry.

The other two trembled visibly as Mewtwo circled around them. The man's sobs shook his entire body, and a dark spot was forming on the other man's pants. They clutched their hands close to their chests, occasionally drying their eyes or nose. Finally, Mewtwo stopped, setting himself down on his feet in front of them.

You are not wicked people. I can see that in your hearts using her blessing, Mewtwo began. I couldn't help but wonder who this "her" was that he kept mentioning recently.

You are just fools. I will not kill you today. The police around me jumped a bit at his statement. I guess they didn't think he would have done it. You will all get long sentence in jail, however. When you get out, if I hear of any of you again, you will know true suffering. Do not waste my mercy.

The psychic-type floated back over to me. He dissolved and went back into his ball. I didn't probe him any further. Police rushed by me to arrest the three thieves. The men that was wet with his own urine was passed out on the beach. The other two looked ahead with glazed over eyes. I couldn't help but feel sorry for their condition. However, my remorse was short lived when I remember the torture Team Rocket put my home region through.

It took multiple SWAT teams, army personnel, and police officers to take them down. Many of which died during the organization's reign of terror. Team Rocket was a disease born of a freshly changed world; one that had just survived an era plagued with war and political tensions.

I didn't remember their formation, I was too young. But, I remember vividly why I hated them.

"Hey, are you okay?" I felt a hand on my shoulder. I spun around wildly to see Akemi standing there. Her face was painted with concern.

"Yeah," I said. I reached up to feel my face. My cheeks were flush with frustration and anger. I dabbed away the tears that I hadn't even noticed were forming.

"Do you want to talk about it?" she asked. Her voice was a calming breeze after a violent storm.

I thought about it for a long moment. Finally, I shook my head. "No."

She nodded. "Okay. Remember, if you need to, I'm here."

"Thanks," I said.

She put her hand in mine, then gave me a reassuring smile. "No problem." Then, she moved forward with me in tow. "Let's go talk to Ethan. It's been forever since I've seen him."

I agreed reluctantly. The last thing I wanted was to meet someone in the condition I was in. However, I let myself get dragged along anyway. I needed something to distract my mind from the reopened emotional wound.