Last edited: 07/01/2020

★👑★

White~

Reshiram followed my instructions. As I got off and onto the ground, it flew off away from the city. Afterward, I began heading to the Ferris wheel, preparing my Xtransciever for whatever's to come.

I'm glad that I had stopped by the Pokétch Company in Jubilife City back in Sinnoh. The creators were planning on making an app that is used to record sounds, as a useful tool for the Sinnoh police. I volunteered to be one of the testers for this new app, so let's see if it works.

If possible, I hope this recording can be sent to Touya somehow.

I took off my Xtransciever and shoved it in my bag, with the recording app turned on. As I approached the Ferris wheel, I noticed Rosa standing in front of the entrance, staring down at her Xtransciever. She looked up and noticed my presence.

"White, I'm glad you came. For a moment I was worried you wouldn't show up," she greeted shyly.

"I came here willingly. Hopefully, you won't waste my time. You brought me here to clear up misunderstandings?"

Rosa nodded. "Yes, I know you must've been told negative things about me. It's not really what you think—I'm sure even Black misunderstood me as well. Come with me. The Ferris wheel is about to operate. Let's ride together."

'It's some sort of trap,' I told myself, and I knew that I was walking straight into one. However, if it does endanger my life I'll at least have the evidence to notify Touya.

"Tepig!" I heard a Pokémon cry out, in which appeared behind Rosa's legs.

"Oh! You're Gigi!" I exclaimed.

Gigi was one of the Pokémon that worked in Pokéstar Studios. I remembered the times that I visited the backstages Gigi was there practicing her acting. Due to my frequent visits, Gigi and I had gotten along very well.

Gigi squealed happily, and as I sat inside one of the carts Gigi hopped onto my lap. I took off my bag and placed it beside my seat, allowing Gigi to rest on my lap comfortably. After Rosa got in as well, the workers closed the door before continuing the rotation.

"I see you've met Gigi. We've been working on many films together, but it didn't seem to like me during the first few. The directors encouraged me to get out with Gigi more often," Rosa explained.

"Gigi's very passionate about acting. However, I've heard Gigi's been battling a couple of times, so it can get stubborn a few times."

I noticed that Gigi huffed in response, turning her head away from me for a moment; however, she glanced back towards me and continued nuzzling its head in my stomach.

"I see... I hope to improve my acting so that I can have the chance to talk to Black," Rosa suddenly confessed.

"Confess to my brother?" I raised a brow.

"Wait, Black's your brother!?" she questioned, clearly startled.

"Yes, he is my brother. He has always been my brother, and you would've challenged him at the League if not for the film Mr. Gold had Black participate in."

She took a deep inhale, before relaxing her shoulders.

"There was a film Black participated in called 'Truth and Ideals'. It hasn't been released yet, but the teasers have been getting a lot of attention. I managed to get a glimpse of a clip from the film and—"

Rosa suddenly stopped, as if she had realized what she said to me.

"Are you using my brother's popularity to boost yourself?" I accused.

She shook her head frantically.

"No! Of course not, but..." Rosa turned her head towards the glass. "That film he was making—it was a film he created on his own—and it contained some things... personal to me."

"Which is?" I questioned, raising my brow once more. Gigi's worried gaze didn't change my attitude towards this situation. I felt her getting off my lap and situating herself beside me.

"I... I'm sorry."

Suddenly, my head began to spin. My vision was blurring, with this pounding sensation irritating me. When I looked up, I noticed Rosa staring at me with shock, yet she refused to get up from her seat.

"What... What have you done!?" I exclaimed. Rosa pressed her hand against her head, which brought confusion towards me. "No... This wasn't supposed to happen! Why...?"

I got up from my seat, aggressively grabbing her shirt to pull her closer towards me.

"You said you wanted to clear up misunderstandings! What is it you want to tell me? What are you hiding from me!? Who sent you!?" I pressed further.

Rosa's eyes formed tears, as her face was clearly in distraught, but I refused to back down. If N had been here... he would've suffered more than what I'm feeling. My strength was slowly going away.

"They said N had joined them, so I followed..."

"N!? What does this have to do with him!? You're trying to harm him!"

"No! I'm not! They told me N rejoined them! They had new uniforms and everything for this new change—and they said you possessed something that N wanted—"

The palm of my hand got in contact with her cheek. I looked down to notice the mark I had left, but I can't back down. The cart was filled with sleeping gas and it was clear that Rosa had planted it inside.

"New uniforms? Something N wanted? The Team Plasma I'm thinking of had kept their old uniforms... N wanted me and him to stay together, to fight and confront Ghetsis together... You're speaking nonsense."

I couldn't hold my strength any longer, as my legs gave in and my body collapsing onto the floor inside the cart. Though my vision was still blurry I noticed Rosa gazing at where I had once stood in shock. I'm sure she realized that she had been tricked.

Foolish girl... but then again, I can see myself in her. Pursuing something so strongly that you lose sight of what's true... the clear line which separates truths from ideals. It's the painful reality we force ourselves to wake up from.

I remembered the female grunt who helped me change my clothes back in Driftveil City... I remembered embracing N under the moonlight yesterday... I remembered the events that happened two years ago.

Touya... Cheren... N... Help me.

★𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞★

The Ferris wheel slowly starts to end. All of the other passengers stared at the one cart in utter shock, the one containing the sleeping gas. Before anyone could call the police, a bunch of Pokémon surrounded the Ferris wheel. Each glared at the passengers as a treat.

A group of people, wearing black uniforms with the familiar 'P' symbol on their left breast of their vests, surrounded the site to ensure no one escapes. Each passenger was held captive to make sure no one spills the beans. As the grunts unloaded the carts, the final cart arrives which contained the two sleeping females.

One of the grunts got inside to carry White, but as the other one was about to carry Rosa out as well the grunt was stopped.

"No, leave her. She's useless now. We got the Champion. However, it seems that Reshiram is not with her, but it shouldn't be too far," a man wearing a large purple suit commanded.

"But Sir Zinzolin, what if she rats us out?" the grunt carrying White asked.

"White's a smart woman. I've seen such a display of intelligence during our battle together. I wouldn't be surprised if she found a way to convey the message to the others about this scheme," the blonde scientist noted, approaching the cart White was in.

He glanced at the sleeping Champion for a moment before entering the cart to search her bag.

"Reshiram is not with her. There's no need to search for anything else, Dr. Colress. However, she knows who that wrench is to us. I had a feeling she would tell the Champion about her... past," Zinzolin scorned, referring to the other sleeping woman in the cart.

Colress noticed White's bag beside the seat, proceeding to only collect her Pokéballs. He stared at one of them—Lucario's Pokéball—recalling the events back in the Driftveil Tournament. He huffed to himself at the memories.

"That may be true, but White possesses something that I would like to look further into. Besides—"

Colress left the cart, stopping by the grunt to take a closer look at the fallen Champion. He raised his fingers to twirl one of White's side locks before stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"—such beauty and intelligence should not be wasted so carelessly. I have some use for her. If Neo Team Plasma chooses to deem her useless, then I'll happily take her into my care."

One of the grunts—the female grunt that was about to carry out Rosa—looked startled at what Colress had offered.

"You realize she's capable of taking us all down," she noted.

Colress removes his hand from White's face and turned to the female grunt.

"Yes, you are correct, which is why I have a use for her. Silly Aldith, it seems we cannot think alike. Her Pokémon give her strength, and so if you take her Pokémon away from her, who is she left with?"

"What are you implying?" Zinzolin questioned.

Colress chuckled at Neo Team Plasma's ignorance. He knew people were going to search for White, which is also why he planned on using White's weaknesses against them. To get a better understanding of where Pokémon's strengths are, Colress needed to understand what drives the Pokémon to their fullest.

For White, Colress knew her friends had something to do with her Pokémon's sense of protectiveness.

"You'll see. In the meantime, I recall seeing Reshiram flying northwest from here. You can deal with catching it and using Kyurem to freeze all of Unova. Barret, bring her to my lab back in the base. Her Pokémon would be perfect test options for my newest creation."

Unknown to the Neo Team Plasma members, a particular Pokémon took cover underneath the seat of the Ferris wheel cart. With the fear cast in its eyes, the Pokémon decided to search White's bag in an attempt to find something to help it. Unfortunately, Colress spared no extra Pokéballs inside of White's bag.

However, to the scientist's cluelessness, an Xtransciever which was still on caught the little Pokémon's eyes. As the grunts and two leaders stepped further away from the cart, the Pokémon hastily shuffled inside of the bag and grabbed the Xtransciever inside the bag.

With small hope in its eyes, the Pokémon hoped to find someone to trust the Xtransciever to, as the device continues to record under the Pokémon's nose.

★👑★

N had found Black and Hugh battling the grunts on the Plasma Frigate. In news to the Plasma group's success in capturing the Champion, the Shadow Triad took the initiative to kick the two trainers off of the Frigate. Before Black and Hugh reached the waters, N brought out Zekrom to catch the two trainers.

"Damn it! We were so close!" Hugh angrily spoke.

N ran into Cheren on his way to find Black. Recalling White's message to him N informed Black on what had happened. In shock, Black turned to N and grabbed both of N's arms.

"What do you mean she needed to go to Nimbasa City for unfinished business? And why does she want me to get Looker—"

Black suddenly realized what White was trying to tell him. Looker was part of the international police, so in other words, White was trying to tell Black to call the police to Nimbasa City. In shock, he explained his realization to the rest of the group.

N and Cheren displayed similar startled reactions, especially N who had realized White walked into a trap willingly.

"There's barely any time! We have to fly to Nimbasa City! Knowing Touko she must've left a clue for us to go off of. Hugh, call the police! I'll contact a particular someone," Black declared, sending out his Charizard to help him fly to Nimbasa City.

"I know someone we can contact as well. I'll give them a call," Hugh stated, sending out his Unfezant to help him follow Black as Hugh pulled his Xtransciever out.

"N, allow me to ride Zekrom with you. Besides, there's something I want to talk about," Cheren requested.

N nodded, hopping onto Zekrom's back and giving space for Cheren. Zekrom leaped from the sand and followed Charizard and Unfezant to Nimbasa City. As they were in the air, Cheren took the initiative to speak what's on his mind.

"You came back because of Touko, so does that mean you know she loves you? Why didn't you stop her from going to Nimbasa?"

N was surprised about what Cheren asked. As a male, he can sense it in Cheren's tone what he had truly wanted to say, the tone that holds many deep, inner feelings.

"Yes. The fact that I tried to follow her shows Touko how much I care about her. After Black explained Touko's true motives in not letting me follow her... this time, I will protect her. She doesn't need to hide me from Ghetsis. I will stop him with her by my side."

Cheren was glad he sat behind N, and how N never looked back to notice Cheren's envious smile. He had the urge to hold back his tears, the sign which tells Cheren he was defeated by N. He had no other reason for his futile pursuit.

"Then... I leave Touko in your hands. She can be a bit stubborn, especially towards things she sees as the truth. Make sure you're by her side to help her guide to the right path, the path that will get her closer to her ideals."

"You are her friend. Of course, I wish to be that kind of person in her life, but I can't replace you as her friend."

Cheren shook his head.

"No... Bianca may be dense—naive too, but she's not stupid. She'll stay by Touko's side but I—"

'—will not'. Those words never escaped Cheren's lips, which left N painfully curious as to what Cheren wanted to say regarding his friendship with White.

Like White, N was also oblivious to how Cheren felt towards White.

"N, promise me a few things. Make sure you fulfill these for me—"

★👑★

The group managed to arrive at Nimbasa, just to see some Nimbasa inhabitants on their knees in front of the Ferris wheel, hands behind their backs while watched by Neo Team Plasma grunts.

"Alright, Charizard! Get me down there. We're going to free those people down there!"

Charizard roared in the sky, signalling the other grunts. They looked shocked, having realized Colress was right. Each grunt prepared their Pokémon to fight; however, Unfezant and Charizard were able to defeat them effortlessly. The police arrived before the grunts were able to call for help.

Black and Hugh assisted in freeing the people. Then, a boy riding a Genesect arrived at Nimbasa, in which Hugh called out to him as 'Nate'. Noticing the situation, Nate had every Ferris wheel passenger give out their testimonies before allowing them to leave.

N and Cheren landed close to the Ferris wheel to allow Zekrom to keep its distance from the Neo Team Plasma members.

After helping the people, Black heard the police calling out to the other officers about a girl who was still passed out inside of one of the carts. In shock, Black identified her as Rosa, in which Hugh and Nate agreed on.

"One of the passengers told me that cart contained two females, but one of them seems to no longer be there. There also appears to be a hint of sleeping gas inside," Nate stated.

"Are you serious? Touko had to be inside there!" Cheren exclaimed.

Black nodded, grabbing White's bag from inside the cart.

"This is Touko's bag, but none of her Pokéballs are inside."

Then Black heard a faint whimper under his feet. He took a closer look and noticed a Tepig underneath the seat, easily unseen if he hadn't looked close enough.

"Gigi! Aren't I glad to see you! Can you tell me where's Touko? The girl you had played with backstage—wait a minute..."

Black noticed White's Xtransciever in Gigi's mouth. He grabbed it to examine the device. His eyes widened when he realized a recording app was still active and had been recording for a while.

"Touko, you're a genius! And Gigi! Good thing they haven't noticed you! Come on, we're going to go save Touko!"

"Wait, Touya. That girl inside... If Touko had been inside this cart, then that girl should know everything Neo Team Plasma is planning. This could also help us save Touko," Cheren deduced.

Black turned back to Rosa who still slept peacefully during the chaos.

"Allow me to interrogate her. I'll get as much information from her as I can," Nate offered. Hugh nudged his elbow at Nate's arm. "Go for it, buddy."

Gigi ran to N, who lifted the Pokémon into his arms. N could sense Gigi's fear and worry, and it wasn't a surprise it was for White. As the group continued planning, N stared back towards the trees. His arms trembled, in which Gigi sensed and looked up at her carrier.

N was worried for White, hoping she would be alright. he vowed to himself to find her again.

"Touko, wait for me. I'll be the one finding you, and I'll be the one to save you from them.

★👑★

Be sure to vote and comment on the story. Also, correct me on any mistakes during the story.

Hope you enjoyed it and are looking forward to the next chapter~

~Lisa