Kellyn was a terrible friend. He was hurting the people he cared about because he wasn't ready to grow up. Between Ash, Wendy, Sven, and Ms. Winter, though, Darkrai was right. Everyone had faced at least one life-altering event that forced them to grow up. Dawn was the youngest and still a new Pokémon Trainer, so she had a little more time.
Kellyn tossed and turned in bed that night, but only succeeded in hurting his arm and returning to the endless void of darkness.
It seemed like Wendy wasn't sleeping well either. Kellyn heard her opening and closing Sven's door multiple times during the night—probably to get things for him. What would they do if the Union pulled him?
The troubling thoughts bombarded Kellyn, but they eventually wore him out, and he finally fell asleep, waking in the morning to the smell of bacon and eggs in the kitchen.
"Kellyn, wake! Kellyn, wake!" Blu hopped over to him and poked Kellyn with his claw.
"I'm awake, Blu," Kellyn said. And, boy, did those eggs and bacon smell delicious.
The others, excluding Sven and Wendy, were in the kitchen, sitting at the table with Ms. Winter.
"Eat up, children," she said, placing a plate of eggs, bacon, and waffles before them. "There's plenty of food."
Ash, Brock, and Dawn's Pokémon teams were in the living room, eating their own breakfast. Lucario was the biggest Pokémon—being a Gem Guardian—and stood out a little.
She stuffed one of Dawn's poffins in her mouth and grinned.
"Do you like my poffins, Lucario?" Dawn questioned from the kitchen.
"Car!" Lucario nodded and scooped up another poffin.
"Piplup! Piplup!" Dawn's Piplup grabbed two poffins from the pile and pulled them over before Lucario could eat them all.
Kellyn chuckled, then grew serious and crawled out of his sleeping bag. He stood and headed into the kitchen.
"Good morning, dear." Ms. Winter approached Kellyn and handed him a plate. "Grab whatever you want for breakfast."
She was so kind, but Kellyn didn't deserve her kindness—especially after hurting his friends. "Thank you," he whispered. While Kellyn fixed his breakfast, he asked Brock, "Brock, how's Sven? Have we called the Union yet?"
"We're waiting until after breakfast," Brock explained, sipping his orange juice. "He's doing better, Kellyn—don't worry. His fever's broken, but he's still tired, coughing, and his head hurts a little."
Kellyn winced. "Is he strong enough to travel?" They couldn't delay Boyleland.
"I think so," Brock said as Kellyn sat at the table. "As long as we keep him mostly off his feet and have Luxray or Staraptor carry him."
"The Union will help you dears come up with a plan," Ms. Winter said sweetly, pouring Kellyn a cup of juice and handing it to him. "The most important thing is that your reckless friend's okay."
Kellyn still felt guilty, though, and it seemed like Dawn did, too. Was she still upset about giving Sven just a blanket in Crysta Cave? It wasn't her fault.
Kellyn ate fairly quickly. He then stood and set his plate in the dishwasher, leaving the others temporarily to check on Sven. He trusted Brock, but wanted proof that Sven was okay.
Kellyn knocked on the door, freezing a bit when he heard Wendy on the other side. "Come in."
Kellyn nodded and opened the door, poking his head inside.
Wendy sat in a chair beside Sven's bed, eating a jelly-filled biscuit, and Sven was sitting up, a breakfast tray on his lap. It looked like he hadn't eaten much, though.
"Oh, hey, Kellyn," Wendy said. "Good morning."
"Good morning," he said back as he entered the room and closed the door behind him. "Are you feeling better, Sven?"
"Still tired," he replied, "but yes." He pushed his breakfast tray toward Wendy. "Wendy, you have the rest of my breakfast. You need to eat more than I."
Sven's Luxray wagged his tail and rested his front paws on Sven's bed, laying his head in his lap.
"Thank you, Sven." Wendy picked up another biscuit from his tray. "You get some rest, and we'll come get you in a little while."
"I'm sorry about this."
"Don't be, dear." Wendy took Sven's hand. "You've been stressed out lately." She met his eyes. "But I promise we'll get through this." She stood and grasped Kellyn's shoulder. "Come on, Kellyn. Let's let him rest."
Kellyn carefully followed her out of Sven's room and back into the kitchen. They reunited with the others, and Ms. Winter led them to her phone in the den, near the fireplace.
Gulping, Kellyn dialed the Union's number, and he and the others focused on the computer screen beside the phone. It powered up, revealing Professor Hastings and Chairperson Erma.
"Good morning, dears!" Erma said, smiling.
Dawn, holding Piplup, lowly said, "Hey, Erma." She still sounded like she felt guilty.
Erma lifted a coffee cup and sipped, then lowered it. "So, little Sven got himself in trouble?"
He wasn't exactly "little", but considering how much older Ms. Winter and Erma were, Kellyn guessed it made sense.
"He'll be okay, ma'am," Brock said, moving closer to the screen. "As long as we keep him mostly off his feet today and have his Luxray or Wendy's Staraptor carry him, I think we can reach Boyleland."
There was a pause, and then Hastings furrowed his brows. "He doesn't have a fever anymore?"
Brock shook his head. "He's just tired."
Why did Kellyn's knees lock? He nearly held his breath, watching Erma and Hastings back away from the computer and talk off to the side. Hastings checked something on a laptop, and Erma hovered over his shoulder.
They were going to pull Sven, weren't they? Kellyn wasn't sure if that was healthy for Wendy, though, considering she was calm near him.
He temporarily left the others and peeked into Sven's room again.
He had fallen asleep and was resting on his side, with only his head exposed from the covers.
Kellyn rejoined the team just as Erma and Hastings jumped back into the scene.
"This is what we'll do," Hastings explained, twirling his mustache around his finger.
Kellyn held his breath, and his knees locked even more.
After a short pause, Hastings said, "Sven will proceed with the mission, but under observation."
Erma joined him. "That means you guys will do your best to keep him off his feet today, and have Staraptor and Luxray help him. The ferry to Boyleland doesn't leave until five this evening, so this gives him plenty of time to recuperate and for you to train, Kellyn."
Train? Oh, gosh.
"However," Hastings snapped, "if at any point he worsens during the day, page us immediately. Call us again tomorrow when you reach Boyleland."
Erma focused on Brock and Wendy. "Brock and Wendy, you're in charge of looking after Sven today; however, Wendy dear"—she gave her a stern look—"don't let your emotions overshadow the mission. Since it's going to be a slow day, you and Sven focus on helping Kellyn train."
Wendy stood tall—"Yes, ma'am"—and bowed her head.
"As for you, Kellyn…" Erma focused on him next. "Congratulations on purifying Lucario."
Please stop with the congratulations. Kellyn's eyes shifted to the floor.
"Oh, don't look so down, dear," Erma continued. "The next Gem Guardian will be better, especially now that you've got Lucario helping you."
Kellyn just noticed that Lucario had joined the crowd.
Erma raised her hands and then slowly lowered them. "Just remember, dear… Balance and confidence."
Kellyn had neither, and his guilt over Wendy and Sven wasn't helping.
***
"I don't understand why I have to ride. I feel fine." With Luxray standing behind him, Sven gently pushed Wendy and Brock away. He had woken up thirty minutes ago after a two-hour nap, and boy, was he grumpy. He was almost golden boy Sven again. Was it weird that Kellyn liked that?
"Nope," Wendy said as she helped Sven onto Luxray's back. "Union's and doctor's orders—you're to stay off your feet today."
"This sucks," Sven mumbled. Oh, yeah, he was definitely grumpy.
"Sven!" Wendy swatted the back of his head, and Sven reached for it.
Ash, Brock, and Dawn chuckled.
"It's okay," Ash said. Kellyn was sure he and his friends had encountered difficult people before.
The team bundled up in their layers, and Ms. Winter led them out the front door to the arctic paradise: clear blue skies and fresh snow on the ground. She handed each of them a bagged lunch, saying, "Here are your lunches, so you don't have to cook, Brock."
Oh, man, she would've made a fantastic mother. Then again, Kellyn knew Ms. Winter was used to young people trying to brave Hia. It was nice that she was trying to make up for that tragedy through this.
"Good luck, dears." Ms. Winter gestured them toward the wilderness. "Take care of yourselves."
"Thank you for everything, Ms. Winter," Brock stated. "Really."
She beamed and waved goodbye while the team and their Pokémon descended her front stairs into the snowy wilderness.
Now, if only there were some way for Kellyn to talk himself out of training.
***
"I think J ditched us." James examined Jessie, who had stood on the rock in the Puel Sea, where Darkrai teleported them from Almia Castle.
Meowth hungrily stared at the light blue water, the coral reefs, and the fish Pokémon swimming under them. "Meowth," he said, reaching for his tummy. "I'm starved."
"Shut up!" Jessie snapped, then her stomach growled. "I'm sure J will be here any second, and then we'll have the chance to wipe those twerps off the face of Almia and get to the Gem Guardian first."
James muttered his following line. "Why do I feel like her optimism will be the death of us?"
Jessie glared and smacked him on his head.
"Oww!" James complained.
"Ah, can we not fight?" Meowth complained, waving his arms. "Cats hate water, but this cat is hungry."
The three focused on an island on the horizon, where a volcano pierced the sky.
"Well, this is it," James said, clutching his head. "We're all gonna die out here."
Jessie growled and shoved him off the rock into the sea.
James's yelps turned into bubbles as he quickly surfaced and hugged the rock, a Finneon on his head.
Right when he surfaced, though, a figure appeared on the horizon, coming from the volcanic island. It headed toward Team Rocket, and they gasped, waving their hands.
The figure slowed down the closer it approached, and tears streamed down James's cheeks. "We're saved!" He hugged Meowth, who cried with him.
A flock of Bird Pokémon flew across the sky as the boat stopped beside Team Rocket, revealing a young woman and her grandmother.
A few small Pokémon sat at the boat's bow, and the young woman studied the team for a long time before finally asking, "What happened to you three?"