As Wanona followed the trail heading west to Fallarbor Town, she began to cough as volcanic ash from Mt. Chimney fell around her lightly. Stopping for a second and looking back, she wondered whether it would be easier on her lungs to go the long way around, before shaking her head. She had already came this far...she could surely make it?

'Just a little more...' she thought, confident in her abilities and somewhat improved stamina from all the walking she did around the region. Surely a little ash wasn't going to stop her when she had went through Victory Road and braved that challenge?

And then came the dark spots in her vision, a sign that she wasn't getting enough oxygen and her lungs started to burn from the poor air quality of what little air was getting into her lungs...

'Please...I'm so close...just need to...get to the Center there...' she thought with her oxygen-starved brain, before she felt herself collapse into the ash-covered grass and her vision fade....

A dark cave, full of moist air that necessarily wasn't good for her lungs. Here she looked up at the exit that led to the Pokèmon League, waiting for Brenden her rival...

She heard footsteps and turned...only to see her old self, Wally. He walked up to her, and clasped a hand on her shoulder, a look of concern on his travel-worn face.

"Why are you running away? Why do you keep lying to yourself? Are you that scared of relying on others for help with your breathing condition?" he asked, a mixture of annoyance and understanding on his face as he released his hand from her shoulder.

Wanona just stood there in shock. What was she running for? Was she that determined to make her own way, to prove herself, that she was willing to neglect help when she needed it the most?

Wally shook his head, a concerned expression on his face. "We can't keep doing this. You can't keep doing this to yourself...because someday...it may just be the last risk you take before you meet your maker." He warns, before putting his head down and walking past her and stopping at the exit.

"Stop hating him, and stop lying to yourself. Stop trying to be so strong and independent. No one can stand alone forever. So make amends, and move on ok?" He asked, before heading out and a bright light beginning to sting Wanona's eyes...

"-are you okay?" a faint male voice asked, fear evident in the tone as Wanona slowly opened her eyes and sputter coughed. Her lungs still felt a little on fire, but not as much as when she had been trying to go through the ash. Looking slightly to her left, she saw Brenden at her bedside with concern in his face.

Looking around, she could tell she was at a hospital: white walls, a constant beep that she knew was keeping her heartbeat, and the white sheets that was on her body that were meant to keep her warm. Sighing, she looked at Brenden and knew from the look in his eyes that he knew she was Wally. He was just waiting for her to confirm what he knew, or lie again.

"How much do you know from when you found me on the way to Fallarbor?" She asked weakly, rolling her head to look at him without using much effort. Brenden shook his head, his concern still etched in his face like a parent would for their child. "Enough. Your wig fell off when you had hit the ground..." he confirmed, before getting slightly irritated. "Haven't I told you before, not to take that way? That was so dangerous for your health, you could have died y'know?"

Wanona nodded, a slight sigh escaping her lips as she knew he was right. She felt so bad, even after whatever the doctors had done to essentially revive her from her near-fatal asthma attack.

Opening her lips, she made a motion for Brenden to come close. When he had his ear next to her, she began to speak:

"I...