If it wasn't scary enough the first two times he saw it, Nihilego was back for round three. This time, the Ultra Beast had targeted him, the Faller who ran into it twice before. The only difference: there was a need to protect his friend.

Beside him, Hau stared up at the creature, terrified. As if it were trying to get Alola's Champion to push the boy away, it lunged for him. But the Trainer didn't move, his knees locked in place. He could feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins as he watched his poor friend succumb to the beast's neurotoxin.

There was a reason for everything...and there was a reason why he let his friend go. He just had to hope he could take his friend's attacks...

The young Champion watched Hau change, fighting tears at the devastatingly horrifying imagery. Hau seemed to fade into it, his ponytail let down by the force of the beast's power.

"...Sol...!" the boy cried weakly, his beautiful eyes shifting colors.

Distraught, he turned away, though unable to peel his eyes from the scene. Sol's blue eyes tinged with fear and a pang of what could be regret were the last thing Hau saw before he lost control.

The beast flew towards him, swatting at him with a giant tentacle. He swung back, though was batted away without a care. With an aching back and a possibly broken arm, Sol staggered back to his feet, ashamed that after only one hit he couldn't take much more of this.

"Hau!! Hau, please! Listen to me!" he cried, ramming into the same tentacle.

Once again, it batted him away, unwilling to lose the victim it had just taken.

For a moment, he lie there in the grass, exhausted. If it weren't for the burning desire he had to save his friend and the relentless power of adrenaline, Sol would've given up right then and there. He hurled himself back to his feet, deciding to resort to other methods. After all, he wasn't about to hurt his friend.

"Hau!! Hau, please! I know you can hear me! I know you're in there, bud!! Please, fight back!!" he cried, still fighting tears.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment. The wind blew gently through the Wela Volcano Park, rustling the grass and Sol's messy hair. It kicked up some dust from the earth, blowing some of it off the edge of the cliff face. Neither of them moved...but there were signs of Hau's struggling. He was fighting with his heart, Sol realized. Hau was fighting with everything he had in him...and Sol just couldn't quite compare. He stood there silently, watching as the boy slowly started falling out from the top of the beast.

Sol rushed forwards to catch his longtime friend, heart pounding. Though the beast couldn't keep Hau contained, it could keep Sol away. It swatted the Champion, knocking him off of his feet once more.

"Hau..." he murmured softly. "...c'mon...keep fighting...I'll save you, I promise..."

It was suddenly clear to the beast how wimpy his opponent was. He was brave, surely, but even though he could last in freezing temperatures in nothing more than a t-shirt, he couldn't withstand the beast's power. The boy staggered back to his feet yet again, obviously worn out and exhausted...but determined to save his friend.

In the blink of an eye, the beast had darted towards him and hovered over him maniacally, preparing for the kill.

"Hau..." Sol murmured, standing there weakly. "...I...I'm so sorry..."

There was another presence, and this one distracted the beast. It rocketed off to the other Faller, dropping Hau in the process.

"Anabel!" the boy cried. "Please...just this once...get rid of that thing! I have to...to......"

Time seemed to slow for a moment as he kneeled down beside his friend. "...Hau...? H-Hau, please...please wake up... I-I need to know that you're okay..." the boy whimpered, cradling his friend in his arms.

The other boy slowly opened his eyes; he looked drunk. Hau frowned a little, realizing who it was. "Why...? Why didn't you stop me...?"

Tears welled up in the young Champion's eyes. "H-Hau, I...I..."

Before he could continue, the kahuna's grandson had slipped out of consciousness...

--Three Years Later--

Ridden with guilt, he sat by his friend's bedside, tenderly holding the comatose boy's hand. He hadn't been the same since the incident where his best friend got so horribly injured. Sol was terribly upset, and it pained him to remember the day when it all went downhill.

There was movement. The boy slowly opened his eyes, this time with an expression of a melancholic curiosity.

"Y-you...you never answered my question..." Hau stammered, his voice hoarse from disuse. "...why? Wh-why did you let it take me...?"

Sol's lips trembled, the tears in his eyes a mix of relief and grief. "...Hau, I...I'd rather be th-the one to...to get hurt th-than watch you suffer b-by my hand..." he cried. "I-I care about you too much...!"

Slowly, Hau's expression changed, his eyes tinted with a bittersweet realization. So his horrifying dreams of hatred were just that: dreams. He wasn't quite sure how to react, however, and thus decided to just close his eyes and slip back into sleep.

To the young Champion however, this didn't mean confusion. He thought that his friend really did hate him, and that he was suddenly alone. Almost ready to burst, the boy abruptly got up, leaving for the hallway.

Sol stood there, sniffling and upset. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he buried his face in his hands.

"...n-nice work, Sol... Y-you've really screwed it up this time... N-no-one cares, anyways... L-Lillie's never coming back, a-and now Hau hates you, too... I...I don't have anywhere to go...n-no-one to talk to..." he trailed off. "A-and...and n-no-one to love..."

He stared at the door to his friend's room, trying not to let it start up again. "Th-that's right, Hau... I...I did that because...because I love you... I...I sat there beside you, waiting...waiting for a glimmer of hope...a-a-and...and then I find out that..."

The door suddenly slammed open, a pale-ish Hau standing there. Concern graced his features, and he heaved a small sigh of relief at the sight of his friend.

Sol, still teary-eyed and red-faced, turned away, his lips trembling. His shoulders heaved with every breath.

This confused the other boy. Had he done something wrong before? And why was Sol so upset? He gingerly laid a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"...Sol...a-are you okay?"

Reluctantly, the blue-eyed boy looked back over his shoulder, seeing Hau through the fog of tears.

"......n-no, Hau...no, I'm not..."

The other boy tenderly stepped forward, trying to convince Sol to face him. "...why? W-was it me?"

Sol shook his head. "N-no...i-i-it was me... I...I probably shouldn't have wasted three years of my life waiting for you...! I...I should've known th-that you...that you'd hate me..."

"Me?! H-hate you?! Sol, no!! No...no..." Hau cried, turning his friend by the shoulders.

"I'd never hate you..." he continued. "I...I thought we were friends, too. And...y'know, I...I thought we could count on each other..."

Sol stood there silently, his breathing shaky. "W-w-we can, I..."

"...you what?" Hau asked softly.

"I...I...I thought that too..." Sol replied slowly, noticing that Hau probably didn't hear him the first time.

"Sol...i-is there something you wanna tell me? You...you sound like there's something buggin' you..."

He nodded. "I...Hau, I..." the boy started gently, taking a deep breath. "...I-I love you. Th-that's why I...why I was so put down, why...why I stayed beside you for so long... That...that's why...why I did what I did..."

"...Sol..." Hau whispered, a small grin on his face. "Funny you say that... I do, too..."